S. HRG.

109393

PROTECTING AMERICAS COMPETITIVE EDGE ACT

(S. 2198): HELPING K12 STUDENTS LEARN
MATH AND SCIENCE BETTER

HEARING
BEFORE THE

SUBCOMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND EARLY

CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT
OF THE

COMMITTEE ON HEALTH, EDUCATION,

LABOR, AND PENSIONS
UNITED STATES SENATE
ONE HUNDRED NINTH CONGRESS
SECOND SESSION
ON

EXAMINING S. 2198, TO ENSURE THE UNITED STATES SUCCESSFULLY

COMPETES IN THE 21st CENTURY GLOBAL ECONOMY, FOCUSING ON
EFFORTS TO IMPROVE MATH AND SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY EDUCATION

MARCH 1, 2006

Printed for the use of the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

(
U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
WASHINGTON

26426 PDF

2006

For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office

Internet: bookstore.gpo.gov Phone: toll free (866) 5121800; DC area (202) 5121800
Fax: (202) 5122250 Mail: Stop SSOP, Washington, DC 204020001

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COMMITTEE ON HEALTH, EDUCATION, LABOR, AND PENSIONS

MICHAEL B. ENZI, Wyoming, Chairman
JUDD GREGG, New Hampshire
EDWARD M. KENNEDY, Massachusetts
BILL FRIST, Tennessee
CHRISTOPHER J. DODD, Connecticut
LAMAR ALEXANDER, Tennessee
TOM HARKIN, Iowa
RICHARD BURR, North Carolina
BARBARA A. MIKULSKI, Maryland
JOHNNY ISAKSON, Georgia
JAMES M. JEFFORDS (I), Vermont
MIKE DEWINE, Ohio
JEFF BINGAMAN, New Mexico
JOHN ENSIGN, Nevada
PATTY MURRAY, Washington
ORRIN G. HATCH, Utah
JACK REED, Rhode Island
JEFF SESSIONS, Alabama
HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON, New York
PAT ROBERTS, Kansas
KATHERINE BRUNETT MCGUIRE, Staff Director
J. MICHAEL MYERS, Minority Staff Director and Chief Counsel

SUBCOMMITTEE

ON

EDUCATION

AND

EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT

LAMAR ALEXANDER, Tennessee, Chairman

JUDD GREGG, New Hampshire
CHRISTOPHER J. DODD, Connecticut
RICHARD BURR, North Carolina
TOM HARKIN, Iowa
JOHNNY ISAKSON, Georgia
JAMES M. JEFFORDS (I), Vermont
MIKE DEWINE, Ohio
JEFF BINGAMAN, New Mexico
JOHN ENSIGN, Nevada
PATTY MURRAY, Washington
ORRIN G. HATCH, Utah
JACK REED, Rhode Island
JEFF SESSIONS, Alabama
HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON, New York
MICHAEL B. ENZI, Wyoming (ex officio)
EDWARD M. KENNEDY, Massachusetts (ex
officio)
DAVID CLEARY, Staff Director
JAMES M. FENTON, Minority Staff Director

(II)

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C O N T E N T S
STATEMENTS
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 1, 2006
Page

Alexander, Hon. Lamar, Chairman, Subcommittee on Education and Early

Childhood Development, opening statement .....................................................
Enzi, Hon. Michael B., Chairman, Committee on Health, Education, Labor,
and Pensions, prepared statement .....................................................................
Ensign, Hon. John, a U.S. Senator from the State of Nevada, prepared statement ......................................................................................................................
Johnson, Henry, assistant secretary, Office of Elementary and Secondary
Education, U.S. Department of Education, Washington, DC; Arden L.
Bement, Jr., director, National Science Foundation, Washington, DC; and
Hon. James B. Hunt, Jr., Former Governor, State of North Carolina, and
Chairman, James B. Hunt, Jr. Institute for Educational Leadership and
Policy, Chapel Hill, NC ........................................................................................
Prepared statements of:
Mr. Johnson ...............................................................................................
Mr. Bement ................................................................................................
Governor Hunt ...........................................................................................
Kennedy, Hon. Edward M., a U.S. Senator from the State of Massachusetts,
prepared statement ..............................................................................................
Rudin, Thomas W., vice president, Government relations, the College Board,
New York, NY; Peter ODonnell, Jr., president, ODonnell Foundation of
Dallas, Dallas, TX; and Joshua Tagore, student, University High School
for Science and Engineering, Hartford, CT ........................................................
Prepared statements of:
Mr. Caperton presented by Mr. Rudin ....................................................
Mr. ODonnell ............................................................................................
Mr. Tagore .................................................................................................

1
2
4

7
8
13
18
32

34
36
41
54

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL
Statements, articles, publications, letters, etc.:
Response to Questions of Senator Enzi by Peter ODonnell, Jr. ..................
Response to Questions of Senator Jeffords by Peter ODonnell, Jr. .............
Response to Questions of Senators Enzi and Jeffords by Arden Bement,
Jr. ...................................................................................................................
Response to Question of Senator Enzi by Assistant Secretary Johnson ......
Response to Questions of Senators Enzi and Jeffords by Tom Rudin ..........

68
69
70
74
75

(III)

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PROTECTING AMERICAS COMPETITIVE EDGE

ACT (S. 2198): HELPING K12 STUDENTS
LEARN MATH AND SCIENCE BETTER
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 1, 2006

U.S. SENATE,
SUBCOMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND EARLY CHILDHOOD
DEVELOPMENT, COMMITTEE ON HEALTH, EDUCATION, LABOR
AND PENSIONS,
Washington, DC.
The subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 10:10 a.m., in room
SD430, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Hon. Lamar Alexander
(Chairman of the Subcommittee) presiding.
Present: Senators Alexander, Burr, Ensign, Dodd, Bingaman,
Kennedy, and Jeffords.
OPENING STATEMENT

OF

SENATOR ALEXANDER

Senator ALEXANDER. Good morning. Excuse me for being a little

late. The Senate, in its usual burst of efficiency, delayed the vote,
and we were trying to figure out how to have the hearing with the
least inconvenience to the witnesses. Todays hearing will come to
order. This is the Subcommittee on Education and Early Childhood
Development. We do have a vote that has started, but rather than
delay things, we will go ahead and begin the hearing, and then
when Senator Bingaman or Senator Isakson or other Senators
come, I will turn the Chair over to them, I will run over and vote,
come back, and then we will go ahead.
We will go in our usual order with the administration witnesses
on the first panel, and then the other witnesses. If it is all right
with the witnesses, I am going to invite Governor Hunt to come up
right after Mr. Bement and Dr. Johnson because he needs to leave
by 11 oclock, and that will give him a chance to testify. We may
have a question or two for him, and then he can be excused, and
then we will go back to the administration witnesses. So that we
will follow procedure.
This is the second in a series of two hearings by this subcommittee on the education provisions of the act we call Protecting Americas Competitive Edge. Another way of talking about it would be
to say that this is the act that incorporates the 20 recommendations of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy
of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine in answer to the
question from a number of Senators: How do we keep our edge in
science and technology over the next 10 years in a more competitive world?
(1)

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2
I want to acknowledge and thank the administration for its cooperation in the development of this legislation. We had extensive
homework sessions, which Dr. Bement and others attended. The
Academy Committee, led by Norm Augustine, basically gave up
their summers and reviewed hundreds of various proposals before
coming up with their 20 recommendations. And I think because of
that extensive amount of work and because of the interest among
Senators on both sides of the aisle for a number of years in this
general subject, we have developed a consensus document. It may
not be the whole answer. It may be amended as it goes. We have
67 cosponsors of the PACE Act, the Protecting Americas Competitive Edge Act, which is the 20 recommendations, some with subparts, from the Academies. And it is beginning to make its way
through the Senate.
Senator Domenici, on the Energy Committee and Senator Bingaman, who are the principal sponsors of the whole act, held hearings
on the eight provisions that are in the Energy Committee. Yesterday we held a hearing in this subcommittee on five more of the
provisions which have to do with kindergarten through the 12th
grade teachers.
Today, we are focusing on students in kindergarten through the
12th grade, specifically four provisions that would, first, increase
the number of students who attend advanced placement courses;
second, provide grants to States to establish high schools that specialize in math and science; third, provide opportunities for middle
and high school students to have internships at national laboratories or at universities; and, fourth, create a clearinghouse of math
and science materials.
Not only do we have a consensus document and 67 cosponsors,
we have a President who put this item high on the agenda, as only
a President can, in his State of the Union address and some significant dollars in the budget that we are considering.
The goal of those of us who sponsored this legislation is to pass
all 20 of the recommendations with improvements, as they are suggested by other members of the Senate, and to fully fund it, which
comes to an $8 or $9 billion figure in the first year, with about half
of that making permanent the research and development tax credit.
So that is a tall order, but if the question is what do we need
to do to keep our advantage in science and technology in order to
keep our jobs from going to China, continue to fight the war on terror, to have energy independence, and to innovate our way out of
the health care crisis, then it seems to me that we ought to try to
do all of the recommendations, not just half of them.
At this point we will include in the record the statement of Senator Enzi, Chairman of the full committee. I would also like to include the statement of Senator Ensign.
[The prepared statement of Senator Enzi follows:]
PREPARED STATEMENT

OF

SENATOR ENZI

Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for holding this second in a series of

hearings on competitiveness. It is good to have another distinguished panel of experts with us today to help inform our work on
this important issue.

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3
Yesterdays hearing gave us all an opportunity to focus on the
role our Nations teachers will play in preparing our children to
meet the challenges they will face when the time comes for them
to take their place in the workforce of tomorrow. We heard from
a number of experts who have had a great deal of success in the
effort to provide the training our math and science teachers will
need if they are to keep their classroom skills current and get their
students excited about learning. That will be a key part of the work
that must be done to ensure our students are the best in the world
and they receive the training in math and science we will need as
a Nation if we are to continue to be a leader in the worlds marketplace.
Todays hearing will focus on the same question, this time from
the perspective of our Nations students and their classroom environment. We will have a chance today to look at ways we can encourage and promote the natural curiosity our children have about
fields like math, science, engineering, health, technology and the
foreign languages we must master to ensure our ability to communicate, correspond and understand the advances that are being
made in other countries in these important subjects.
Over the past 10 years, this country has paid significant attention to math and science education, and some reports suggest were
on the right track. According to the 2003 Trends in International
Math and Science Study (TIMSS), 8th graders in this country
ranked 15th in math achievement among the 45 participating Nations. In science education, American 8th graders ranked 9th. In
both instances, those rankings were an improvement from the 1995
study.
We still have a lot of ground to cover. The TIMSS study points
out that for the period from 1995 to 2003, 4th graders in this country did not improve their standing in math achievement, and 4th
grade science achievement actually declined relative to other Nations. Other studies, such as the PISA 2003 study, rank the United
States even lower in math and science skills, behind 25 other Nations.
Most studies, however, identify the same challenge for our country. The Nations leading in math and science achievement are
quickly becoming our biggest competitors in the international economy. Korea, Hong Kong and Japan continue to outperform the
United States on math and science achievement in most studies, as
do many Nations in Europe.
Congress took important steps to help improve our math and
science education achievement when we passed the bipartisan No
Child Left Behind Act. Achievement has improved, and the accountability embraced by that legislation is paying off. Teachers,
principals and school support staff are making an effort to reduce
the achievement gap, and its working. In Wyoming, for example,
reading and writing achievement has improved statewide and the
State high-school completion rate is 81.5 percent, among the highest in the country.
We are at a point where policymakers need to look at the next
step, and figure out how to support an education system that will
improve math and science outcomes into the future. Our ability to

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4
develop strong foundations now will pay off for years to come as we
face stronger competition globally.
Last month, we heard from Secretary of Education Margaret
Spellings on the role of education in meeting the challenges of global competitiveness. This committee also hosted a roundtable discussion on high school success, where participants talked to us about
building and filling the pipeline so more high school students graduate on time prepared for postsecondary education and the workplace, and not in need of further remediation.
One such idea is the expansion of Advanced Placement and
International Baccalaureate programs. In Wyoming, weve seen an
almost 17 percent increase in the number of students enrolled in
AP courses, and a 16.3 percent increase in the number of students
taking AP tests.
We look forward to hearing today from experts who will share a
variety of perspectives with us. Your insights will be an invaluable
addition to our understanding of how to improve our students
abilities and their achievements in math and science. I hope you
realize how much we appreciate and value your attendance and
participation.
I look forward to continuing to work on these issues with my colleagues on this committee, so that we might find new and better
ways to incorporate the concepts we will learn during these hearings into a legislative strategy that will ensure our long-term competitiveness in the world marketplace for generations to come.
[The prepared statement of Senator Ensign follows:]
PREPARED STATEMENT

OF

SENATOR ENSIGN

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Senator Alexander

for holding a hearing on math and science education. The past 2
years have seen an unprecedented amount of activity and interest
in math and science education. First was the unveiling of the National Innovation Initiative by the Council on Competitiveness. Following that, the National Academies of Science released a report titled Rising Above the Gathering Storm. Each of these reports
lists specific recommendations to Congress that are designed to increase the competitiveness and innovativeness of the United
States.
These reports have elicited numerous legislative proposals. Senator Lieberman and I introduced the National Innovation Act in response to the National Innovation Initiative. Senators Alexander,
Bingaman, and others introduced three different bills that make up
the Protecting Americas Competitive Edge, or PACE, Acts. These
proposals offer a myriad of solutions to help better prepare our Nations students in math and science education.
This country has a long-standing history of being one of the most
inventive and innovative countries in the world. We have also fostered competition and attracted scientists, engineers and mathematicians from across the world. However, I feel that we are losing
that competitive edge.
The purpose of todays hearing is to review math and science
education and determine what can be done to truly protect our
competitive edge. It is my belief that we must first take stock of
what we have. The Government Accountability Office took the first

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5
big step with their report on Federal science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) programs. This report found that the
Federal Government supports over 207 STEM-related programs.
Unfortunately, this report did not include programs funded within
the Department of Defense. I hope to work with Secretary Rumsfeld to get a good account of the programs that DOD is currently
supporting.
It is absolutely vital that not only each of us work together, but
that each Federal Agency work together as well. I believe that Dr.
Bement said it right in his testimony: even the most innovative
programs, however, will not result in improving STEM achievement unless we find ways to scale them up and remove impediments to their broad adoption. We need to focus our efforts and
work with each of the agencies that support STEM programs to see
how they can hold each other accountable and produce the most effective results.
In reviewing the PACE legislation that has been introduced by
Senators Alexander and Bingaman I can say that I am supportive
of many of the concepts that are embedded within the legislation.
It is vital that we get better qualified math and science teachers
in the classroom, we must work to get students excited about taking math and science courses, we must work to expand Advanced
Placement (AP) programs, and we must find a way to get researchbased, effective curriculum into the hands of teachers. However, I
disagree with the manner in which the PACE bills realizes these
concepts.
First, I believe that math and science related programs need to
be housed and supported in agencies that have proven track
records in providing effective math and science education programs, both for teachers and students. The Department of Education and the National Science Foundation have strong track
records and are eager to be held accountable for the programs they
have. It is unnecessary and unwise to spread these programs
across agencies that do not have the expertise or know-how to get
into a classroom and really help our teachers and students. I would
rather have agencies like the Department of Energy do what they
know best, and that is to develop and implement effective energy
policy for this country.
Second, it is vital that we take stock and learn more about each
of the programs that the Federal Government currently funds before moving forward with comprehensive legislation. It would be
unfair to us and to taxpayers if we create programs that are only
duplicating efforts found elsewhere. There are numerous Federal
programs that have proven track records and are similar in purpose to those proposed by the PACE legislation. A thorough review
of these programs needs to be completed to determine where we
need to go next. I am hopeful that this review will also uncover
programs that have outgrown their original purpose and no longer
serve a national need. If such programs are found, then they need
to be terminated and their funding reallocated to other STEM-related programs.
Third, it will be necessary to create some new Federal programs.
It is important that these programs be crafted to compliment ongoing action in States, local school districts, and the private sector.

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6
It is clear from the testimony provided to this subcommittee that
States, universities, school districts, and the private sector have
created programs to meet the needs of students and teachers in the
STEM fields. Congress must ensure that we do not hamper these
efforts, but enhance them. It may be necessary to provide seed
money, especially for some of the new teacher training programs
that are proposed in PACE. But, I fail to see a compelling policy
reason for the Federal Government to support these programs indefinitely. As Dr. Rankin said in yesterdays hearing, universities
and departments need to find ways to include these new programs
in their budget to support ongoing activities.
Finally, it is absolutely imperative that we include metrics for
current programs and any new program we create. Effective
metrics are the only way for Congress and the public to know how
these programs are performing and if they are fulfilling their purpose. Programs must be required to report exactly what they are
doing, how well they are performing, and long-term effects of their
program.
Mr. Chairman, as this committee moves forward in its efforts to
increase competitiveness, I hope that it will endorse the best parts
of all the bills that have been introduced. Senator Lieberman and
I introduced provisions in our bill that will promote and accelerate
research and development on innovative projects. Also included in
this legislation is a renewed commitment to better fund basic research at the National Science Foundation (NSF). Provisions are
included that will increase regional economic development activity
and advanced manufacturing systems. The legislation also includes
a provision that would permanently extend the research tax credit
for companies engaging in long-term research projects.
We took a narrow approach when it came to education issues as
well. We increased the number of graduate fellowships and
traineeships at NSF. We also authorized funds to expand Professional Science Masters Degree programs at universities across the
country. The Tech Talent expansion program is bolstered in this
legislation, as is innovation-based experiential learning. Also enhanced is the Department of Defenses Science Mathematics and
Research for Transformation (SMART) scholarship program.
The National Innovation Act took a very narrow approach. We
were careful to look for effective programs that are already funded
by the Federal Government and found ways to expand them. The
legislation also looked outside of the structure of the Federal Government to assist the private sector in engaging in important research, especially high-risk, high-payoff research.
Again, I thank Senator Alexander for his leadership on these important issues and look forward to working with him in the future.
I believe that in working together we can find solutions that will
work best for our country and will truly keep the United States
competitive.
Senator ALEXANDER. We have a distinguished panel of witnesses
to testify. Assistant Secretary Henry Johnson from the Department
of Education is one of the two administration witnesses. I hope in
addition to commenting on the PACE Act, he will also compare it
to the provisions in the Presidents American Competitiveness Initiative.

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7
Dr. Arden Bement, Director of the National Science Foundation,
is here. He has broad experience in a great many of the areas we
are talking about. Dr. Bement, one of the things we especially want
to consider is whether we are duplicating programs: whether you
are already doing some things, and other parts of the Federal Government are doing some things. These are very good and wellthought-out recommendations, and we will be interested, especially
in your comments about whether we ought to build on or amend
some things we are already doing, or whether there needs to be
some new initiatives.
I will introduce the second panel when we get to it, but for now,
I think the best thing to do is to begin first with Dr. Johnson, then
go to Dr. Bement. I have a little machine here that goes for 5 minutes. I would appreciate your trying to summarize your comments
within 5 minutes, which will give the Senators time to ask you
questions.
STATEMENTS OF HENRY JOHNSON, ASSISTANT SECRETARY,
OFFICE OF ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION, U.S.
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION, WASHINGTON, DC.; ARDEN L.
BEMENT, JR., DIRECTOR, NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION,
WASHINGTON, DC.; AND JAMES B. HUNT, FORMER GOVERNOR OF NORTH CAROLINA, AND CHAIRMAN, JAMES B.
HUNT, JR. INSTITUTE FOR EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP AND
POLICY, CHAPEL HILL, NC

Mr. JOHNSON. Thank you, Chairman Alexander. Is this on? Can

you hear me?
You have already heard from the Department earlier. Secretary
Spellings, I think, addressed you earlier, and Tom Luce addressed
you yesterday. I want to focus on the impact of the Presidents
American Competitiveness Initiative on K12 students.
Senator ALEXANDER. Dr. Johnson, you reminded me of something
I meant to say that is in my prepared remarks. You are exactly
correct that this is not just a concern of our subcommittee. The entire Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions is interested in competitiveness. It is the number one agenda for our
Chairman, Mike Enzi, and we have had two very good hearings
prior to these two hearings chaired by Senator Enzi, and at the
first one Secretary Spellings came. At the second one, we heard
from a number of educators and others from around the country.
So thank you for mentioning that.
Mr. JOHNSON. And, again, thanks to you and members of the
subcommittee. Improving mathematics and science education K12
and beyond is critical to this country. For K12 students, this improvement is part of a high-quality education. It opens the door to
postsecondary education and provides a workforce with the skills
necessary for success in the 21st century economy. And, again, we
appreciate the efforts of this subcommittee.
There has been solid progress in mathematics education in this
country in the early grades. One example: 4th grade performance
of students on NAEP from 1990 to 2005 shows that the percent of
students at or above basic rose from 50 percent to 80 percent. The
percent of students at or above proficiency almost tripled, from 13

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8
to 36 percent. For 8th grade students, the improvement was not as
impressive, but still in the right direction.
For the same time period, the percent of students at or above
basic climbed from 52 percent to 69 percent, and the percent of students at or above proficient doubled from 15 to 30. Good improvement, but not where we need to be.
Even with this improvement at the elementary level, still too
many students hit the wall, so to speak, once they get to middle
and high school, and I am going to make this brief, Senator.
Looking at NAEP long-term trend data, using the skills moderately complex mathematics procedures and reasoning, performance was unchanged from 1999 to 2004. And PISA ranked student
performance in this country in math 24th out of 29 member States.
We are, in fact, sending better prepared students to the secondary
schools, but we are not seeing the return at the secondary level.
And we have got some idea where the problem starts.
In one example, 82 percent of middle school and high school students tested below proficient in Algebra I on a California standardized test. And using, again, a longitudinal study from the U.S. Department of Education, it shows that algebra is the gateway
course for higher mathematics and postsecondary.
Because of these data, the President reached the conclusion that
something needs to be done, the same conclusion this committee
reached. The time to act is now.
The administration drafted a 2007 budget proposal to improve
K12 mathematics and science. In this proposal are several complementary activities, and I will briefly mention them: improving
elementary school math to ensure all students are ready for algebra in middle school; providing extra support for middle school students who are below grade level in mathematics; increasing the
availability of challenging college-level mathematics and science
courses in high school; and support for a wide range of locally determined high school reforms.
The Secretary has initiated a National Mathematics Panel, and
very soon that panel will start its deliberations, and we expect and
hope that the panel will identify essential mathematic concepts.
Essentially, we are looking to see if there is an analog in mathematics for what we found in the research regarding reading, the
components of a comprehensive reading program.
We want the panel to help us identify effective instructional
methods, and the President is proposing $10 million in the 2007
budget to begin implementing the recommendations of the panel.
I see my time will be up pretty quickly. I will be happy to go into
more detail about the components of the American Competitiveness
Initiative after the other speakers have a chance to speak. Thank
you.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Johnson follows:]
PREPARED STATEMENT

OF

HENRY JOHNSON

Good morning, Mr. Chairman and members of the subcommittee. Thank you for
this opportunity to testify about President Bushs efforts to improve math and
science education through his American Competitiveness Initiative. Teaching and
learning essential concepts of mathematics and the sciences are a critical part of a
high-quality education. They help open the door to postsecondary educationespecially for our poor and minority studentsand help to ensure that our future work-

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9
force has the skills needed to benefit from the increased competitiveness of the global economy of the 21st century. For all of these reasons, I appreciate the efforts of
this subcommittee to bring attention to the need to improve instruction in math and
science in our elementary and secondary schools.
I know you have already heard from Secretary Spellings and Assistant Secretary
Tom Luce, so I will do my best to take a little different perspective and focus on
our K12 students, where they are now in terms of math and science achievement,
where we need to go, and how we can get there.
SOLID PROGRESS IN THE EARLY GRADES

I want to begin by pointing out that in some ways, this new emphasis on math
and science education is surprising. After all, we have solid evidence that the math
achievement of younger American students has been improving steadily for the past
15 years. For example, the percentage of 4th graders performing at or above the
Basic level on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) rose from
50 percent to 80 percent from 1990 to 2005. Over the same period, the percentage
of 4th graders performing at or above the Proficient level almost tripled, from 13
percent to 36 percent.
The story is similar, though not quite as impressive, for 8th grade scores on the
NAEP. The percentage of 8th graders scoring at or above the Basic level climbed
from 52 percent in 1990 to 69 percent in 2005, while the percentage of 8th graders
at or above the Proficient level doubled from 15 percent to 30 percent.
These numbers sound pretty good, and we have not been shy about highlighting
this progress as evidence that the standards-based accountability required by the
No Child Left Behind Act is working to improve our Nations educational performance.
BUT TOO MANY STUDENTS HIT THE WALL IN MIDDLE AND HIGH SCHOOL

Unfortunately, we also have strong evidence that we are not getting the job done
in the higher grades, in late middle school and particularly at the high school level.
I know that many of you are familiar with this data, so I will mention just two examples. First, the Long-Term Trend NAEP results show that the performance of 17year-olds on moderately complex mathematical procedures and reasoning did not
change from 1999 to 2004. Second, this underperformance has widened the gap in
mathematics achievement between U.S. students and those of other countries. According to the 2003 Program for International Student Assessment, American students ranked 24th out of 29 members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation
and Development in mathematics literacy and problem solving.
Data suggests that low achievement in high school math starts when students do
not obtain the skills necessary to take and pass algebra. In 2004, for example, 82
percent of middle- and high-school students in California tested below the proficient
level in Algebra I on the California Standarized Test. These results are particularly
alarming in light of longitudinal studies conducted by the Department showing that
Algebra is a critical gateway course on the path to postsecondary education.
THE AMERICAN COMPETITIVENESS INITIATIVE

President Bush looked at this data and reached the same conclusion as this subcommittee: the time for action is now. This is why his 2007 budget proposed an
American Competitiveness Initiative (ACI) that includes several proposals designed
to significantly improve mathematics and science education in grades K12.
The ACI would fund several complementary activities intended to (1) strengthen
math instruction beginning in the earliest grades to ensure that all students are
ready for Algebra in middle school, (2) provide extra support to middle school students who are below grade level in math achievement, and (3) increase the availability of challenging, college-level math and science courses to high school students
through Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate programs. In addition, the ACI would support a wide range of locally determined high school reforms
aimed at ensuring that every student not only graduates from high school, but graduates with the skills necessary to succeed in either college or the workforce.
To kick off this effort, Secretary Spellings will move quickly this year to create
a National Mathematics Panel, which will work to identify essential mathematics
content and effective instructional methods. This Panel, modeled after the success
of the National Reading Panel in identifying the research-based reading instruction
that informed President Bushs Reading First Initiative, will lay the groundwork for
establishing a solid research base of math instruction to guide reforms at the Federal, State, and local levels. The Department is proposing to spend $10 million in

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fiscal year 2007 to begin implementing the Panels recommendations for improving
math instruction in our K12 classrooms.
The Panels recommendations also would guide implementation of the Presidents
Math Now for Elementary School Students Initiative, which would provide $125
million in competitive grants to partnerships promoting instructional principles and
promising practices aimed at ensuring that all students in grades K6 master the
algebraic concepts that they will need to take and pass Algebra in middle school.
Grantees would target their efforts to elementary or middle schools with significant numbers of students who are at risk of not meeting adequate yearly progress
requirements in mathematics under the title program. Funds could be used for professional development in mathematics instruction, the adoption of research-based
instruction and promising practices, and enhanced assessments designed to pinpoint
where students need help. In particular, these activities would provide significant
resources to ensure that teachers with sufficient content knowledge teach students
who need the most help.
We also are asking for $125 million for a companion proposal, Math Now for Middle School Students, designed to throw a lifeline to middle school students who are
below grade level in mathematics. This program would award competitive grants to
partnerships serving one or more middle schools for activities such as diagnosing
the deficiencies of students who tested below the proficient level on State math assessments, implementing research-based interventions involving intensive and systematic instruction, continuous progress monitoring, and professional development.
In addition to Math Now, the ACI includes new incentives to encourage qualified
math and science teachers to work in high-poverty schools. The proposed Adjunct
Teacher Corps would use $25 million to promote arrangements under which experienced professionals with subject-matter expertise, particularly in math and science,
would teach in secondary schools. Such arrangements could include part-time instruction, teaching while on leave from their regular jobs, or providing instruction
online.
EXPANDING ADVANCED PLACEMENT

Another highlight of the American Competitiveness Initiative that I want to briefly mention is a $90 million expansion of the Departments Advanced Placement program. This proposal, which is consistent with a key provision in the PACE-Education Act, would train up to 70,000 teachers over the next 5 years to teach math,
science, and critical foreign languages in AP and International Baccalaureate programs.
We believe that the Advanced Placement program offers a proven, scalable approach to raising expectations and increasing rigor in Americas high schools, particularly those with high concentrations of low-income students that typically do not
offer such curricula.
HIGH SCHOOL REFORM

Another piece of the 2007 Education Agenda, consistent with the goals of ACI, is
the Presidents High School Reform proposal, which would provide $1.5 billion to
support a wide range of locally determined interventions aimed at ensuring that a
high school diploma becomes a ticket to success for all graduates, whether they
enter the workforce or go on to higher education. This proposal also would require
States to assess students in reading or language arts and math, at two additional
grades in high school. NCLB currently requires assessments in these subjects for
just one high school grade. These additional assessments would help increase accountability at the high school level and, in particular, would help teachers and
principals target interventions to those students at greatest risk of not meeting
challenging State academic standards and not completing high school. This is critical for reducing the roughly 1 million high school students who drop out each year,
at great cost to our economy and society.
ACI BUILDS ON EXISTING PROGRAMS

The Presidents American Competitiveness Initiative proposes innovative, cost-effective ways to improve math and science instruction in Americas public schools
that would build on earlier efforts in this area by Congress and the administration.
For example, for fiscal year 2006, Congress provided first-time funding of $99 million for the Teacher Incentive Fund, a program proposed by President Bush to provide financial incentives to help improve achievement in our highest-poverty schools,
including achievement in math and science. And Congress recently made permanent
the loan forgiveness provisions of the Higher Education Act, which help bring more
individuals with math and science backgrounds into the teaching profession by of-

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fering up to $17,500 in loan forgiveness for highly qualified math and science teachers serving low-income communities.
The Department also administers the Mathematics and Science Partnerships program, which provides State formula grants to help States and localities improve student academic achievement in mathematics and science. The program promotes
strong teaching skills for elementary and secondary school teachers, including integrating teaching methods based on scientifically based research and technology into
the curriculum.
In a broader sense, as you heard yesterday from Assistant Secretary Luce, the entire No Child Left Behind enterprise, with its emphasis on assessments, accountability for results, school improvement under title I and ensuring that all teachers
are highly qualified in the subjects they teach, provides a strong push to State and
local efforts to improve achievement in the core curricula, including math and
science.
CONCLUSION

In conclusion, I believe the Presidents American Competitiveness Initiative, along

with the PACE-Education Act, sends an important message to the American people,
and especially to parents. No Child Left Behind reforms are taking hold and student
achievement is rising, but we need to raise the bar again if we are to prepare our
children for the jobs of the 21st century and benefit from increased global competitiveness. The ACI will help us reach that goal, and I urge the members of this subcommittee to give the Presidents proposal careful consideration as you move forward in your efforts to improve math and science education in grades K12.
Thank you, and I will be happy to answer any questions.

Senator ALEXANDER. Senator Bingaman.

Senator BINGAMAN. Mr. Bement, why dont you go right ahead.
I think people will be coming and going while we do this vote over
on the Senate floor, but if you would go ahead, that would be helpful.
Mr. BEMENT. I would be delighted. Thank you. I appreciate the
opportunity to testify before you on a topic of great importance to
me personally and
Senator BINGAMAN. Is your microphone on?
Mr. BEMENT. I can speak louder. It is on. And the topic is the
State of mathematics, science, and technology education in our elementary and secondary schools.
As you are well aware, the National Science Foundation has been
selected to play a major role in the Presidents American Competitiveness Initiative. One of the cornerstones of our involvement is
preparing the Nations scientific, technological, engineering, and
mathematics workforce for the 21st century while improving the
quality of math and science education in Americas schools.
In line with the administrations focus on this vital national priority and in partnership with the Department of Education, NSF
will invest $104 million in a new effort named Discovery Research
K12 that aims to strengthen K12 science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education. We will refocus our efforts on a
vital cluster of research in three well-defined grand challenges:
first, developing effective science and mathematics assessments for
K12; second, improving science teaching and learning in the elementary grades; and, third, introducing cutting-edge discoveries
into K12 classrooms.
We will also increase funding for the Graduate Teaching Fellowships in K12 educationbetter known as GK12by nearly 10
percent to $56 million, supporting an estimated 1,000 graduate fellows. By pairing graduate students and K12 teachers in the classroom, this program has been particularly successful in encouraging

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effective partnerships between institutions of higher education and
local school districts. This is a win-win program.
In our budget request, NSF proposes a reorganization of the Education and Human Resources Directorate so that we can more effectively focus NSFs contributions to improving STEM education
in other words, getting more bang for the buckto include greater
emphasis on effective evaluation of the programs we fund. The
American Competitiveness Initiative provides a framework for research agencies that support STEM education programs to work
more collaboratively, with a greater attention to evaluating the efficacy of these programs. And I am proud to be a member of Secretary Spellings Competitiveness Council.
Last week, the National Science Board released its biennial report, Science and Engineering Indicators. It provides a summary
of the scope and quality of various facets of that enterprise and
provides a wealth of information for policymakers.
One of the striking trends in the overview chapter is documentation of the pace of the increasing internationalization of science and
technology. Graph after graph show the worldwide growth of investments in research and development, the increase in international scientific publications, and the expanding production of
science and engineering degrees in Europe and Asia.
On the plus side, the U.S. share of the worlds high-technology
manufacturing grew from 25 percent in 1990 to nearly 40 percent
in 2003. But a larger question is whether we are training new entrants into the high-tech workforce with the skills that are needed
for these jobs.
Science and Engineering Indicators devotes an entire chapter
to elementary and secondary education in mathematics and
science. While there is some good news on this front, clearly there
is also room for improvement.
For example, between 17 percent and 28 percent of public high
school math and science teachers lack full certification in their
teaching field. College graduates who become teachers tend to take
fewer rigorous academic courses in high school, scored lower on college entrance exams, and graduated from less selective colleges.
A number of programs at NSF are aimed at improving various
aspects of K12 education. Within our Division of Elementary, Secondary and Informal Education, we have programs that range from
new curricula, new pedagogical techniques, better ways to train K
12 teachers, educational activities that take place out of the classroom, and the application of new technologies to education.
In my written testimony, I have commented on several proposals
in the PACE bill that would establish programs at NSF. A number
of other programs that would be established in the PACE legislation, although not as NSF, are reflective of the types of activities
NSF has supported over the years.
In light of the American competitiveness strategy to evaluate ongoing Federal formal and informal education programs, I feel that
implementing any additional program that overlap those at NSF
should await a review of our existing programs. This will allow us
to determine where the greatest promise is for making a national
impact on education.

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In conclusion, I look forward to working with the committee to
help identify and better develop the pipeline for future leaders in
math and science, and I would be happy to answer your questions.
Thank you.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Bement follows:]
PREPARED STATEMENT

OF

ARDEN L. BEMENT, JR.

Chairman Alexander, Ranking Member Dodd, and members of the committee, I

appreciate the opportunity to testify before you on a topic of great importance to
me personally and to the Nations futurethe state of mathematics, science, and
technology education in our elementary and secondary schools.
As you are well aware, the National Science Foundation has been selected to play
a major role in the Presidents American Competitiveness Initiative. One of the cornerstones of our involvement is preparing the Nations scientific, technological, engineering, and mathematics workforce for the 21st Century while improving the quality of math and science education in Americas schools.
NSFs investments in research and educationin discovery, learning, and innovationhave a longstanding and proven track record of boosting the Nations economic
vitality and competitive strength. Todays youngsters face a world of increasing global competition. We depend on the excellence of U.S. schools and universities to provide them with the wherewithal to meet this challenge and to make their own contributions to Americas future. We need to build strong research foundations and
foster innovation in K12 science and mathematics education.
In line with the Administrations focus on this vital national priority, and in partnership with the Department of Education, NSF will invest $104 million in a new
effort named Discovery Research K12 that aims to strengthen K12 science, technology, engineering and mathematics education. We will refocus our efforts on a
vital cluster of research in three well-defined grand challenges:
Developing effective science and mathematics assessments for K12;
Improving science teaching and learning in the elementary grades;
Introducing cutting-edge discoveries into K12 classrooms.
We will also increase funding for the Graduate Teaching Fellowships in K12
Educationbetter known as GK12by nearly 10 percent to $56 million, supporting an estimated 1,000 graduate fellows. By pairing graduate students and K12
teachers in the classroom, this program has been particularly successful in encouraging effective partnerships between institutions of higher education and local
school districts.
In our budget request NSF proposes a reorganization of the Education and
Human Resources Directorate so that we can more effectively focus NSFs contributions to improving science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education to include greater emphasis on effective evaluation of the programs we fund.
The American Competitiveness Initiative provides a framework for research agencies that support STEM education programs to work more collaboratively and with
a greater attention to evaluating the efficacy of these programs.
Last week the National Science Board released its biennial report, Science and
Engineering Indicators. This document is a compilation of up-to-date quantitative
data on the U.S. scientific and engineering research and education enterprise. It
provides a summary of the scope and quality of various facets of that enterprise and
provides a wealth of information for policymakers.
One of the striking trends in the overview chapter is documentation of the pace
of the increasing internationalization of science and technology. Graph after graph
show the worldwide growth of investments in research and development, the increase in international scientific publications, and the expanding production of
science and engineering degrees in Europe and Asia,
On the plus side, the U.S. share of the worlds high technology manufacturing
(aerospace, pharmaceuticals, office and computing equipment, communications
equipment, and scientific instruments) grew from 25 percent in 1990 to nearly 40
percent in 2003. But a larger question is whether we are training new entrants into
the high tech workforce with the skills they will need for these jobs.
The Science and Engineering Indicators devotes an entire chapter to elementary
and secondary education in mathematics and science. While there is clearly some
good news on this front, we have room for improvement.
For example, between 17 percent and 28 percent of public high school math and
science teachers lack full certification in their teaching field. College graduates who

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14
become teachers tend to take fewer rigorous academic courses in high school, scored
lower on college entrance exams, and graduated from less selective colleges.
A number of programs at NSF are aimed at improving various aspects of K12
education. Within our Division of Elementary, Secondary and Informal Education
we have programs that support a range of activities, including the development of
new curricula, new pedagogical techniques, better ways to train K12 teachers, educational activities that take place out of the classroom, and the application of new
technologies to education.
In addition, we have numerous programs within our Research and Related Activities Directorates targeted at improving K12 education. Examples of these include:
The aforementioned GK12 fellowship program which provides support for
graduate students to provide science and engineering expertise in elementary and
secondary schools;
Research Experiences for Teachers, which provide hands-on research opportunities for K12 teachers working with NSF Grantees;
Science of Learning Centers;
Geoscience Teacher Training designed to improve the quality of geoscience instruction at middle and high school levels;
Centers for Ocean Science Education Excellence (COSEE) to promote ocean education as an exciting vehicle to interest students in science and enhance science education.
Even the most innovative programs, however, will not result in improving STEM
achievement unless we find ways to scale them up and remove impediments to their
broad adoption. That is where NSFs coordination with the Department of Education
is important. I have met personally with Secretary Margaret Spellings and I believe
we have a shared sense of mission to identify and implement high quality programs
that will result in improvements in student performance. When three quarters of
American colleges find it necessary to offer courses in remedial mathematics and 22
percent of entering freshman take these courses, it is clear that our high schools
are not doing the job they should be doing.
Let me turn for a moment to address several of the provisions in S. 2198 that
are directed at NSF, including section 132, NSF scholarships for mathematics and
science teachers. This section would authorize NSF to award merit-based scholarships of up to $20,000 per year to students majoring in mathematics, science or engineering who also pursue teacher certification.
This program very closely parallels the existing Robert Noyce Scholarship program at NSF, except that the Noyce program makes awards to institutions rather
than individuals. The grantee institutions are then responsible for administering
the scholarship program. The benefit of this approach is that it places the management of the scholarship programselecting recipients, setting course requirements,
monitoring progress, counseling students, assisting with placement, ensuring compliance with post graduation requirements, and so forthin the hands of the college
or university.
When we established the Noyce Scholarship program we felt that it would be inefficient, if not impossible, to duplicate that management structure at NSF. Estimates
were that it would cost up to one-third of the scholarship funding for administration
purposes, should we choose to run the program at NSF. By comparison, the Noyce
Scholarship program is administered by the recipient institutions for a 10 percent
overhead. For these reasons we feel that the current Noyce scholarship program is
preferable to the program proposed in the PACE-Education bill.
A second provision in the PACE-Education bill specific to NSF is section 141,
which would establish NSF fellowships for mathematics and science teachers. This
program would provide up to $10,000 annually for 4 years to support for certified
math, engineering or science teachers who teach in their specialty areas in highneed school districts. Teachers with a Masters degree in science or mathematics
education could receive 5 years support for undertaking additional leadership responsibilities such as mentoring.
Incentives to attract and retain high-quality science, mathematics and engineering teachers in the K12 education system should be encouraged.
Fellowships for mathematics and science could help achieve these goals, but we
should examine this proposal in terms of potential cost-effectiveness. As a hypothetical example, if we applied $100 million a year (a very large program by NSF
standards), we would support 10,000 teachers annually. In 5 years, we would have
placed the equivalent of approximately four Fellowship teachers in each of the Nations school districts. Ironically, the average length of a career for math and science
teachers is about 5 years. The challenge is clearly not just one of recruitment of
trained math and science teachers, but also their retention.

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It is not the case that because we cannot do everything, we should do nothing.
Because resources are limited, however, we must be very judicious in identifying
and supporting programs that will have the greatest impact, all the while recognizing that many of the decisions on taking steps to improve math and science education will be made by local school districts.
A number of other programs that would be established in the PACE legislation,
although not at NSF, are reflective of the types of activities NSF has supported over
the years. We have, for example, ongoing programs such as the Centers for Learning and Teaching; the Mathematics and Science Partnerships Teacher Institutes;
Early Career Awards; and incentives for high-risk/high-payoff research projects. In
light of the ACI provision to evaluate ongoing programs, I feel that implementing
any programs that replicate those at NSF should await a review of existing programs in order to determine where the greatest promise for making a national impact lies.
Finally, Mr. Chairman, let me extend my thanks to you for your leadership examining opportunities to improve innovation and competitiveness in America. I look
forward to working with you and the committee to help identify, and better develop,
the pipeline of future leaders in math and science. S. 2198 is being reviewed by the
administration, and we would appreciate the opportunity to provide views on the
bills provisions prior to further consideration by the committee. I would be happy
to answer any questions that you may have.

Senator BURR. Senator Bingaman, it is my understanding that at

this time we are going to deviate from the plan to accommodate the
schedule of a witness on the second panel. Governor Hunt, if I
could call you up, we will call up James B. Hunt, representing the
Institute for Educational Leadership and Policy from Chapel Hill,
NC, the former Governor of North Carolina.
Governor, it is delightful to have you here to have your expertise
in education, your perspective on a unique facility that we have in
North Carolina tied to the university system, but that specializes
in high school excellence in science and math. You are recognized
for your testimony.
Governor HUNT. Well, thank you very much, Senator Burr.
Senator BURR. Governor, push that button and make sure that
mike is on, please.
Governor HUNT. Is it on now? The light was on. Maybe I better
get to another one.
Is this one on? All right. Senator Burr, thank you very much
forthat is all right; I can just be on top of it hereyour kind comments, and I want to say how delighted I am as a North Carolinian
to have you on this committee. North Carolina has needed a member of this committee, and you will serve very well, and I want to
be of any assistance that I can, and my institute does.
Let me say there has been a lot of discussion already about competitiveness issues here, and Jeff Bingaman and I, Senator Bingaman and I have served on some of those committees and groups
over the years. But the greatest threatI come from a State that
has lost a lot of low-paying jobs. Senator, you know it as well or
better than I do, and we could give the numbers of textile jobs, furniture jobs, many of them in your former congressional district.
Now, we regret that we have lost those jobs, but the greatest
threat to America is not that we have lost a lot of low-paying jobs.
It is the fact that we are about to lose a lot of high-paying, highskill jobs.
I am on the board of a company. I was at a board of directors
yesterday, a software company that has mostly hired software people in the United States and North America, but is now beginning
to do so in India and China. I asked them at a board meeting, I

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said, How good are those software engineers? They said, They
are every bit as good as the ones we produce in the United States,
and we pay them one-fifth what we have to pay in the United
States.
So we really are in a situation where this competitiveness thing
is very serious. And the way I like to talk about it is to talk about
the economic strength and the security of America. That is literally
what is at stake here folks in terms of our economy.
It means that to have that, to preserve that strength, we have
got to have the best educated, most highly skilled workers in the
world in America, and we have to keep getting better all the time
because all the rest of them are getting better and are a real competitive threat to us. And this is especially true, of course, in math
and science and technology.
Twenty-five years ago, in North Carolinawe were concerned
about these issues even thenwe started the North Carolina
School of Science and Mathematics. This is a residential school, 650
students on the campus in Durham, 350 get their teaching by distance learning. It has been highly successful. Seventeen States
have copied it.
Senator Jeffords, I am delighted to see you, sir. What a great
leader you have been on education.
In the last 3 years, this school produced 33 Siemens Westinghouse Prize winners. This is the most highly respected competition
in America. It is judged by Nobel Prize winners. Thirty-three winners from the School of Science and Math in North Carolina in the
last 3 years.
Seventy-five percent of the graduates work in science and mathematics, and many of them are starting up new companies that are
competing nationwide.
One of the things it does, in addition to excellent education for
these students, is to train teachers. They bring them in during the
summer from all over the State. They help develop curricula that
is better in mathematics and in science.
So we have done some good things there. I could talk about other
things. But I want to say to members of this committee today. We
have so far to goa huge way to go. And the competition is about
to clean our clock. We cannot be too serious about this, in my opinion.
I heard Secretary Johnson talking about the improvements we
have made, and we have. North Carolina in the 1990s made more
gains on NAEP scores in math and reading than any State in
America because we worked with the business community and
worked with the legislature and made a lot of progress. But recent
reports have shown us where we are internationally.
A recent report on 30 countries and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development showed that of those 30 countriesyou have probably heard these figuresthe United States is
15th in reading, 18th in science, 24th in math. Of the G8 countries, the eight countries, we are 7th in 10th grade mathematics.
Now, those are the facts, folks. We are not competitive today,
and we have tried, we have done a lot of things. Senator AlexanderI remember him pushing to pay teachers more for better

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teaching, and he did, the first State to do it. We have done a lot
of things like that in other States now.
But we have got so far to go, and let me give you an example
of why this bill is so important. In the last 5 years in North Carolina, a pretty good State university system, we produced three
physics teachers. We are not doing it. And we are not alone. This
is typical of the country. We are not producing those teachers, and
they are not teaching our students.
So I want to say to you today that we have got to take drastic
steps. You all think a lot up here about national security. I want
to tell you, nothing is more important to our national security than
having an excellent education system and being first in the world
in education and then with our economy.
I support every provision in this bill, especially those having to
do with producing 10,000 new teachers and paying supplements to
those folks who will teach math and science in the poor schools.
Now, finally, Mr. Chairman and members of this committee, I
want to say a couple of things that may not fall easily on your ears,
but I think you need to hear them and I think everybody in this
Congress needs to hear it.
We have historically said education is a local issue, it is a matter
for Wilson County or Forsyth County. It is a State issue, and it will
remain that way to a large extent. But we are at the point today
where, if we are going to maintain our economic strength and the
security of America, education is going to have to be far more a national matter.
And I want to suggest to you, Mr. Chairmanin fact, here is a
way to look at it. It is not Tennessee, or Davidson County, North
Carolina, against China. It is not Tennessee or North Carolina or
Vermont or New Mexico, or whatever, against China. It is America
against China. Of course, we want to cooperate as much as we can,
but we are in competition. It is America. And America has got to
be concerned about how we are doing.
I want to give you two suggestions. First of all, I want to urge
that we continue the No Child Left Behind Act. We need to do
some fixing of it, but it has been good for this country, and it has
meant that we learn more and we are concerned more about all of
Americas children. And I support it, but we need to make some
changes.
Second, I hope that you will enact all of President Bushs recommendations in his State of the Union address. They are good
and they are needed.
But then I want to suggest that you, the Congress, ask the academies, who have done such wonderful work on this bill, ask them
to develop American standards in science and mathematics that we
can invite the States to put in place, both standards and develop
assessments of those standards, that the Congress can invite and
encourage States to put in place. And I would suggest that you provide some significant economic incentives for them to put those
American standards in place so that we can compete.
And I think there are ways to do this. I think, you know, Governors have worked on this a lot. We have made some progress
not nearly enough. I have been watching this thing for 30 years,
Mr. Chairman, and I have worked my head off on it for 30 years.

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But we are not where we have got to be, and America has got to
step up. No longer can this just be something that Governors and
legislators and school boards are working on. This Congress has got
to take this on. This ought to be the biggest issue for Congress in
the years to come.
The final thing I want to suggest is this: You have got something
in this bill that I love, and that is, pay more money to math/science
teachers. I tried to get a bill through the North Carolina Legislature one time to pay a supplement to math/science teachers. I got
it through one House, and I couldnt get it through the other one
to save my life. How many States have done it? Any? I dont know
if any are doing it. And there are people who fight against it. We
have got to do it.
I would urge that you not only pass this, I would raise that
$10,000 supplement to $20,000. We have some places around the
country that have tried to put more money to get people to go into
poor schools. It takes about $20,000, or more, to get a teacher to
go into a poor school and teach. So I would suggest that you raise
that to $20,000, or as soon as you can, and I think the Congress
is the way to break this logjam. You can do it from Washington.
We cannot do it in the States, I dont think. But if the Congress
would say it is essential to our future, our economic strength and
our national security to provide more math/science teachers and to
pay them more money and you provide the money, we can do it.
Why do you need to provide the money? Because we are putting
money into trying to get Dells to come to North Carolina and to
do a lot of things at the State level that we just have to do because
we have got to compete with the world.
But, folks, I think this is the right thing to do. I am delighted
that you are pursuing this. I want to thank every one of you individually for your interest in it and your work on it. I will be delighted to help in any way that I can, and I will be delighted to
work with Governors as we get them behind this. I think they will
support this idea. But I am very proud of this bill, and I hope you
will pass it and enlarge it.
[The prepared statement of Governor Hunt follows:]
PREPARED STATEMENT

OF

HON. JAMES B. HUNT, JR.

Mr. Chairman, Senator Dodd, members of the committee, it is an honor to be here

today to discuss Americas competitiveness in the 21st century global economyand
the role science and math play in meeting those challenges.
The United States faces a competitive challenge not only from foreign companies
but from foreign workers. Across the United States, many corporate executives are
saying there arent enough Americans with the skills to fill job openings. Just last
week, the vice president of human resources for the worlds largest privately held
software companywhich is located in the Trianglestated he needs employees
with graduate degrees in math, statistics and computer science. It has become
alarmingly clear we are falling short when it comes to producing the talent companies like this needand preparing students for the pursuit of these degrees. We are
paying the cost.
Alan Greenspan was right when he said, the United States has achieved its economic [and political] standing in the world based largely on the entrepreneurial
spirit and high skill level of its citizens. But, a practical question still remains. Will
workers in the United States have the skills necessary to compete with workers in
China, India and South Korea in the 21st Century? Im talking about intellectual
capital: Creativity, Innovation, and Entrepreneurship.
Americans canand mustcompete in todays global economy but it will take
strong leadership and a bold new emphasis on K16 education. It will take a

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renewed commitment to bring students to a higher level of competencenot only
in math and science curriculum but also in creativity, innovation and entrepreneurship. It will take a significant investment in human capital for each and every
U.S. citizen in order to maintain our competitive and comparative advantage. Senate bill S. 2198 is a good first step in achieving a new level of creativity and innovation among our Nations students to enable them to successfully compete.
I have had the opportunity to travel the world on numerous trade missions to
China, India, and South Korea and other developing Nations. What I have witnessed on these trade missions has opened my eyes to the challenges that exist for
our Nation. Countries around the globe are educating students to compete in the
knowledge-based economy. These workers can do the same work as U.S. workers
from anywhere in the worldfor less than a fifth of the cost. This presents us with
a real challenge. There must be a sense of urgency not only among our political
leaders but among all Americans. There is no greater time to forge ahead with bold
initiatives to educate our citizens if they are to be prepared to compete globally.
According to a 2004 report by the National Center for Education Statistics, of the
30 countries composing the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the United States ranks 15th in reading, 18th in science, and 24th in mathematics. In addition, the United States ranks 7th out of the G8 countries in 10th
grade mathematics. We dont have to look far to see what could be considered a contributing factor. According to the latest poll conducted by Public Agenda, parents
dont see the urgency of science and math. There is a clear disconnect here. Policymakers and employers clearly see this slip as a threat to the Nations economy.
But, if our parents dont understand the importance, we cant expect our students
to. America can do better. For the sake of our Nations economy, and the quality
of life for our citizens, we must.
For several decades, North Carolina has proven to be a national leader not only
in education reform, but also in preparing students for the changing economy. During my four terms as governor, North Carolina set the goal of being first in the Nation in terms of the quality of its education system. We demonstrated strong political leadership and consistently communicated with citizens the need to improve education in terms of its connection to the economy. And, we partnered with
the business community to achieve a clear understanding of the skills necessary
for employment in the changing economy and to gain their assistance in driving
education reform.
In addition, we focused on supporting our teachers to improve instruction
and increase recruitment and retention rates. We also established high
standards for our teachers, administrators and students and created assessments to evaluate those standards. Collectively, these efforts resulted in
North Carolina students achieving the largest gains in math and reading achievement in the Nation on NAEP testing between 19902002.
Despite all of our efforts to improve education, it wasnt enough. North Carolina,
much like the Nation as a whole, has faced a period of dramatic economic transition.
Jobs in our agriculture and manufacturing sectors dramatically declined. Within
a 10 year period, our State lost more than 180,000 manufacturing jobs alone.
Nearly 50 years ago, the vision of policymakers and business and education leaders led to an investment in 21st century industries. This included biotechnology,
telecommunications and computing. Today, that vision is Research Triangle Park
a public-private research planned research park that houses some 136 companies
and employees nearly 38,000 people.
These visionaries understood that proper education and training of North Carolina residents would be critical to establish a workforce capable of taking advantage
of these growing industries and job opportunities. Through the years, North Carolina sustained that bold commitment to support math, science and technology education.
One example of our commitment to science and mathematics education is the
North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics (NCSSM). The school opened in
1980 as the first school of its kinda public, residential high school where students
study a specialized curriculum focused on science and mathematics. NCSSM teaches
science, mathematics and technology using practical applications along with integrated teaching methods. The curriculum is inquiry basedfocusing on engaging
students in mathematics and science through applications that relate to
specific real life applications and employment opportunities. The school has
nearly 650 students and teaches another 380 students across the State using distance learning, or online virtual courses. NCSSM administrators and teachers also
work with teachers in rural areas to help them improve their instructional
methodology.

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NCSSM has forged partnerships with a number of businesses including
IBM, which has provided $2 million to help enhance instructional technology and
teach 21st century skills. The results have been exceptional. NCSSM has produced
33 Siemens Westinghouse prize winnersthe Nations premier high school science
competition judged by Nobel Prize winnersin the last 3 years. More than 75 percent of NCSSM graduates are working in the science and technology field
and making significant contributions.
The school has become both a national and international model. In 1988, the
school became a founding member of the 76 member National Consortium for Specialized Secondary School of Mathematics, Science and Technology. Recently, the
Minister of Singapore visited the school. He was so impressed that he hopes to
replicate a similar initiative in his country. The NCSSM has become an international model because the faculty, administration and students have created a curriculum that integrates science, math and technology into practical applications and makes learning engaging and connects it to real world applications.
In its report recommending the establishment of the North Carolina School of
Science and Mathematics, the Planning Committee Commission wrote, The most
compelling reason for doing so is that creative excellence in science and mathematics is a worthy goal in itself. The facts are, however, that excellence also
underlies such practical needs as more and better jobs, better living conditions, development of new and abundant sources of energy and other advancesall of which are of great significance to North Carolina and the Nation.
Let me remind you this was written nearly 30 years ago. What could easily be
viewed as foresight then, should be common sense now. North Carolina as a State,
and we as a Nation, face even greater challenges today. For example, UNC System President Erskine Bowles recently said, In the past 4 years, the UNC System
has turned out only three physics teachers. It is imperative to cultivate creativity
and excellenceparticularly in science and mathematicsif we are to continue
to be the worlds economic leader. In addition to the School of Science and Mathematics, we have vigorously pursued opportunities to improve math and science
achievement in North Carolina to promote economic prosperity.
The North Carolina Mathematics and Science Network was established to
strengthen the quality and size of the teaching base and the number of students
that graduate from North Carolina high schools prepared to pursue careers requiring mathematics and science skills. The Network provides high-quality, professional
development opportunities for teachers and recruits students to mathematics and
science careers through pre-college programs.
Another initiative, The North Carolina Board of Science and Technology,
encourages, promotes, and supports scientific engineering, and industrial research
applications. The Board investigates new areas of emerging science and technology,
conducts studies on the competitiveness of State industry, and works with the governor and the General Assembly to put into place the infrastructure to support the
next generation of North Carolina science and technology firms.
In addition, the North Carolina Science, Mathematics, and Technology
Education Center, endowed by the Burroughs-Wellcome Fund, was established to
help North Carolina achieve a scientifically literate workforce and improve science
and math instruction by fostering research based and comprehensive programs of
instruction. The Center also supports educational initiatives and resources to ensure
academic success in science, math and technology for all North Carolina students.
The James B. Hunt, Jr. Institute for Educational Leadership and Policy,
which I chair, and the center are currently involved in planning a Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Summit. This is our effort to bring
together educators and key policymakers to help determine what next steps we need
to take to not only catch up, but get ahead of the game.
These initiatives are a good start to advancing science, math, and technology education progress. But Im here to tell you we must do much more. I believe that
the recommendations set forth in Senate bill S. 2198 are bold steps to support and
advance innovation, creativity and entrepreneurship in our Nation.
In order to achieve creative excellence in science and mathematics, it is necessary to recruit, retain and support teachers. It is a well documented fact
that the single most important element in a students academic success is that students teacher. A 1999 study by the American Educational Research Association
found that 27 percent of math teachers and 18 percent of science teachers were not
certified in their field. A similar study found that 45 percent of biology students,
61 percent of chemistry students and 63 percent of physics students from 1987 to
1999 were taught by teachers not holding a major or certification in that
subject. This is an injustice to our studentsand our educational system.

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I strongly support Senate bill S. 2198s recommendation to recruit and provide
scholarships for 10,000 science and math teachers. I particularly support the provision to provide bonuses to participating teachers in underserved schools. We must
invest in our teachers if we hope to improve the education progress of our
students.
Recruiting and retaining teachers is only the beginning. It is critical to provide
teachers with professional development and enrichment opportunities. I
helped establish the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards for that
very purpose. The goal is to advance the quality of teaching and learning by maintaining high standards, providing certification for teachers who meet these
standards, and by capitalizing on the expertise of National Board Certified
Teachers.
The recommendation of Senate bill S. 2198 to strengthen the training and education of 250,000 teachers is critical to provide teachers with the ongoing development they need to be successful. It is imperative that we start treating our
teachers as professionals. They have the responsibility to help shape the minds
that will run our corporations and influence education policy of their own in the future. They are one of our Nations most vital resources. We should treat
them that way.
In addition to supporting K12 education progress and teacher recruitment, retention and professional development, we must focus on enhancing our institutions of higher education. I strongly support Senate bill S. 2198 provisions to
support and enhance institutions of higher education through increased scholarships, fellowships, Federal tax credits, and visa processes.
American higher education has long been the envy of the world. For decades, students have come from across the globe in search of this education. Decades ago, they
also stayed and contributed to our workforce. We can no longer depend on that.
Now, developing countries around the world are creating first-rate higher education
systems. As a result, more students are choosing to stay and contribute at, or closer
to, home.
All of these things are important. But, equally important is the education our
students receive at our colleges and universitiesespecially our future
teachers. They must be prepared to take their place in our workforce to help America remain strong. Their preparationhere in Americamust be the best the
world has to offer. It is our obligation to make sure that happens.
Thank you for the opportunity to testify today on what has become, in my opinion,
a national crisis of global proportions. I will be happy to answer your questions.

Senator ALEXANDER. Governor Hunt, do you have another 5 or

10 minutes for a round?
Governor HUNT. I do, yes, sir.
Senator ALEXANDER. Why dont we go to Senator Bingaman first
and then Senator Burr and then Senator Jeffords.
Senator BINGAMAN. Well, thank you very much, Mr. Chairman,
and, Governor, thank you for all your leadership on education
issues. Ever since I came to Washington, you are the go-to person
as far as actually making progress in a State. And I admire greatly
what you have been able to do, what you were able to do in North
Carolina, and what you have been able to do nationally. But you
are right, we have got a long way to go, and my concern, frankly
and I am going to get into this with our other witnesses. My concern is that the prescription that we have come up withI mean,
I commend the President for putting this on the national agenda,
as he did in his State of the Union speech. And Senator Alexander
and Senator Domenici and I urged him to do that, and he was
planning to do it anyway, I believe. But at any rate, he did it,
which is great.
I dont see in the budget that has been submitted to the Congress
the kind of follow-through that I think is required in order to actually make substantial progress. I mean, this is a big undertaking
if we are going to be doing the kinds of things that we all think
need to be done here.

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I think that, you know, we can have a lot of discussion around
here about exactly how the programs are designed and which agency is responsible for what and all of that. But sooner or later, it
comes down to how much are you willing to commit by way of resources to see some things change.
Governor HUNT. Absolutely.
Senator BINGAMAN. And that is where we all fall short. And, of
course, we have got a budgetary bind that we have gotten ourselves
into, so we do not have enough money here in Washington. We
have got big deficits. We have got inadequate revenue. And so it
is very hardI mean, you know, you feel like you are favoring a
particular area of the budget if you do not cut it too much. That
is sort of the mentality around here. And so we are not able to do
what we need to do. I dont know if that is just sort of a lament
on my part, but if you have any comments, I would be anxious to
hear them.
Governor HUNT. I do, Senator. I wish we could go out, I wish this
committee would go out and do a survey of the people of America
and ask if they want Congress to put more money into education.
You know what it will come out to be? About 70 or 80 percent will
say yes. I guarantee it. They want us to do it. They understand it
and they want us to do it.
Now, I know you have got problems, and I know we have put a
lot into Iraq, and we have been trying to do the right thing for our
country and for the world there. That is going to be phasing out.
Lets take the money we have been putting in Iraq and start putting it in education, gradually. As that phases down, phase this up.
And, by the way, if you have to borrow some money to put it into
educationyou borrowed it for other things. Borrow it for this if
you have to.
Now, I am a balanced budget man. I got the constitutional
amendment through to require it in North Carolina, although we
have always had it. But this is so important. This is as important
as waging a war. In fact, it is the big competition among countries
and is going to determine who is going to have both the wealth and
the jobs and the power in the future.
Senator BINGAMAN. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Senator ALEXANDER. Senator Burr.
Senator BURR. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Again, Governor, thank you for your willingness to be here. More
importantly, thank you for your passion for education. North Carolina has been the beneficiary of that, and we do have a unique facility in the North Carolina School of Science and Math, affiliated
with the university system, which is an unusual model and not
necessarily that part of it did others follow around the country.
Let me ask you, how important do you believe that there is that
higher education component to the School of Science and Math and
what effect that might have on the success of the high school component?
Governor HUNT. Oh, it is absolutely essential. We have to treat
these together, Senator. Higher education must prepare the teachersand prepare them to a high level, by the way. I often like to
say to folks in higher education, Listen, you cannot leave it up to
the dean of education. The chancellor, or the president of the uni-

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versity, or whatever you call them, has got to take this seriously
and work with the dean and make sure that education in arts and
sciences are working together so that our teachers learn to high
standards and they understand the subject matter and they are
masters of the pedagogy and all of that. And, of course, they then
have to do a lot of the professional development work with teachers. We have got studies that say it is not just a matter of how
much you pay teachers, it is how well you continue to develop them
professionally and work with them after they get in so that the experience is fulfilling and they do not get burned out and they want
to continue.
And, by the way, the North Carolina Center for the Advancement
of Teaching up in Cullowhee that you have been to is a great thing,
sort of an Aspen for teachers. They go there and they get renewed
and revitalized, and they want to continue teaching instead of quitting as they had intended to do.
But higher education and K12 have to work hand in glove in
this.
Senator BURR. Governor, one of the realities across the country
is that less than 50 percent of the teachers who teach math in K
12 have a major or a minor in the subject.
Governor HUNT. Right.
Senator BURR. And I think all of us believe that your express
goal is, in fact, the right one and that we should put a greater emphasis behind this.
How long will it take for us to get into the system, the national
system, a sufficient number of teachers who have the academic
major to successfully go in and teach math and science?
Governor HUNT. Why dont you do what this Congress did and
America did when John Kennedy said we are going to put a man
on the moonwhat did he say? In 10 years? How long was it? I
cannot remember. Lets take 10 years.
Why doesnt this Congress say, with the leadership of this committee and this subcommittee, in 10 years no child in America will
be taught math or science by an unqualified teacher? I would like
for it to be 5 years, but, you know, lets set a goal for America, and
then lets get to work producing those teachers, doing the things we
need to do to keep them in the classroom, which involves a lot of
things, including money, seeing that they are paid well, seeing that
we continue the professional development work, and you all keep
looking at what it is going to take in terms of salary.
And, by the way, we can do some additional things. IBM has a
wonderful program now in which their retirees who are in math
and science, they will pay them after they retirethey keep their
benefits, and then they will pay them extra to be teachers. This is
a wonderful thing to do. There are many ways we can do things
like that.
But what I am saying is I hope the Congress for America will
set a goal, and a tough goal, and you all find out what it is going
to take to make that goal happen, and then put the resources in,
put the mandates in. This is something we can do. We have acted
like we cannot do this in America. We can do this, if we set the
goal, and if we work hard, and if we make it a number one priority.

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Senator BURR. Governor, I agree with you it can be done. I want
to thank you for your continued support for No Child Left Behind.
We have our differences in Washington, but I think it would be
putting our head in the sand to not also admit we have our own
problems in North Carolina and every State across the country
with educators who believe that No Child Left Behind is a national
program that should not exist, that it is too involved in K12 local
education. There are some days I think that if they would spend
as much time trying to figure out how to make it work as they
spend trying to figure out why it will not work, we would have a
tremendous class of graduates versus the low expectations that we
have got today.
In exercising the same opportunity that Jeff Bingaman did, let
me also say that I think everything that we have talked about is
a component to success. The one thing that we have yet to debate
in this country that I think we have to debate is where we set our
expectations. Our children do not read from us the hunger to compete at the same level, especially that Asian children do. I think
it is one thing to raise a generation that believes winning is not
the only thing in life, but competition is something that they are
going to be faced with, this generation, my children are going to
be faced with. They will compete for jobs against individuals they
will never meet, who likely do not live in this country, for a job
that can be placed anywhere. And they will likely have three or
four careers in their life, not just jobs but different careers. The
challenge is for this generation. Their ability to meet it will truly
be determined by what we as a Nation set the expectations for
their success and the success of this country.
So I think even though we talk about qualified teachers and we
talk about investment and we talk about what we can do in the
classroom, if we cannot raise their expectations, what we provide
for all will go unused by some. And that would be a huge mistake.
Again, I thank you.
Senator ALEXANDER. Senator Jeffords.
Senator JEFFORDS. Since the late 1950s, we have all talked about
the importance of strengthening math and science education from
kindergarten through to college graduates. We have enacted a
number of Federal initiatives. However, 50 years later we are still
talking about how this Nation needs to rethink math and science
education.
I would like to have your thoughts as to the reasons you believe
we have not been completely successful at all at previous efforts.
Is it the lack of funding, or are these barriers in the educational
delivery system?
Governor HUNT. Senator, I think the main thing is there is so
much competition for people who are good in math and science in
America. You know, you come out asfirst of all, we are not preparing enough in our colleges and universities, and we have not
found ways to bring them in from the outside, like we would bring
in an adjunct professor, you know, into higher education. We have
got to be more flexible in getting the good people.
But there is so much competition for them now. The Research
Triangle in North Carolina would snap them up just like this, and

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the one developing in Winston-Salem North Carolina. And you
have got things like that in your States.
And it is tough. You know, it is a lot easier to maybe get a degree in some of these other areas, and it may be easier to teach
in some of them.
Whatever the reasonsand then, of course, at the same time this
has become so much more important in the world, you know, the
way the world is developing with technology and the way the competition is coming along.
So I dont want us to think we havent done some good things.
We have done a lot of good things. Our children know more about
math and science. Our teachers that are in there are probably better teachers. But the world is going so fast and the competition is
so tough, so that we have just got to do a whole lot more than we
have ever done before.
And I want to say, Senator Jeffords, of all the people in this town
who have given great leadership, who have had their heart in it,
body and soul to it throughout their career, you are one of the
greatest, and I am one of your greater admirers, as you know.
Senator JEFFORDS. Well, I appreciate those comments very much.
In fact, I am leaving the Senate and going back to the University
of Vermont to do what I think needs to be done, and that is to get
our educational system in operation the way it must be. So I appreciate what you have done, and thank you for your comments.
Governor HUNT. Thank you.
Senator ALEXANDER. We have been joined by the ranking Democrat on our subcommittee, Senator Dodd, who is one of the strongest supporters of the PACE Act. I have a couple of questions for
Governor Hunt, and Senator Dodd does, and then we will go back
to Dr. Bement and Dr. Johnson.
Governor Hunt, you know I am one of your big fans in education.
We did not worry about competing with China when I was Governor and you were Governor. We worried about competing with
North Carolina. And I can vividly remember bringing our Speaker
of the House, Ned McWherter, later our Governor, over to North
Carolina more than 20 years ago to see your new Science and Math
School, which, as I remember, cost about $10 million a year
maybe it was 5at that time. We were trying to consider what to
do.
We elected not to try to do that because of the cost, and instead
we created Governors schools, which are now in their 20th year,
and are summer institutes, primarily for students. We have a Governors school for math and science at the University of Tennessee,
for 4 weeks, and it has had a phenomenal effect. As the students
come in, they not only learn, but when they go back to their
schools, they are heroes and heroines, and they transform attitudes.
So my question is, now looking over the 20 years of the Science
and Math School and the recommendation of the PACE Committee,
that each State be given some funds to do this, if they wish, and
in Tennessee Governor Bredesen said he might like to do it, what
is your advice for Governors and for us as we look ahead?
For example, is spending that much time and attention on such
a small number of students worth the dollars, or would it be better

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if it were institutes that attracted more? How could it be better related to teaching? Twenty years ago, we did not have the online opportunities we have today, so what would be the three or four
things that you would suggest that someone creating a residential
math and science school consider as we look ahead?
Governor HUNT. Senator, I think having one that is truly excellent, that shows the world what excellence is, is a good idea. As I
said, 17 States copied North Carolina. I saw the one in Oklahoma
recently.
Senator ALEXANDER. What is the cost now? Do you remember?
Governor HUNT. I am not sure exactly what the cost is. You
know, it goes up. But it is a regular school. It gets the regular
school funding.
Senator ALEXANDER. Right.
Governor HUNT. Then it has some additional funding, and we
raise a lot of private funds. But you need examples of excellence
in our society.
In fact, I remember going to regular high school in Durham and
going into a science class, and the science teacher went to great
lengths to show me what his students were doing and saying, We
are just as good as the School of Math and Science over there. So
this competition thing really works.
But I would also recommend that pretty good size school systems
have their own schools of math and science. You know, we have
schools that specialize in different things. Obviously, we want
every student in America to learn math and science, but we have
got to have some place where we take students as far as they can
go, and this is another thing I would want to say to this committee.
Listen, folks, the folks who are going to do the breakthrough work,
who are going to do the basic research, which means discovering
new knowledge that man never knew before, that then leads to
new products and services and energies, those are going to come
from the brightest minds. We have got to figure out a way that we
can start focusing on creativity and innovation at the same time we
are trying to bring all of our students up to a certain level.
This is one areaand some of our teachers are saying this to us.
We need a little more flexibility in how we can teach, you know,
so we can develop creativity.
So I would say we want to improve math and science education.
Every student needs to learn the basic things they need to know
there. Then we need to haveI think in every school district, we
need to have a special school where those who are even more interested and have greater aptitude can go. And then I would think
every State ought to have oneor at least many States should.
Senator ALEXANDER. May I ask you one other question? And then
do you have time for questions from Senator Dodd and Senator
Kennedy?
Governor HUNT. Yes, sir, absolutely I do.
Senator ALEXANDER. OK. Here is my other question. You have
done a lot of work on recognizing outstanding teaching, which we
both know is a big challenge. I was at a conference this past week
sponsored by the Aspen Institute. There are 400 ideas about what
to do to improve education. It all boils down to parents and teach-

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27
ers in every discussion, and since we do not know what to do about
a better parents law, we end up with teachers.
In every discussion we had about teachers, all of the ideas that
we came up with sort of faded because, after a few years, very good
teachers had no way of being paid more for being a good teacher.
Now, you have made some comment about the so-called differential pay, as we call it, but what else can we do here to create incentives or introduce the idea in this country that an outstanding
teacher deserves a financial reward? Have we made any progress
in the last 20 years in developing a consensus about how to do
that? If I am on the school board in Wilmington or the school board
in Jackson, TN, or Springfield, MA, am I going to have to fight
World War III in order to recognize a teacher who has been there
for 7 years by paying that teacher $15,000 or $20,000 more a year?
What comment do you have?
Governor HUNT. Mr. Chairman, you started working on this a
long time ago, and I remember it. In North Carolinalets take
Wilmington, NCif you are in a school where the school makes a
years progressDr. Henry Johnson helped get this underway
when he was in North Carolina. The school makes a years
progress, the teacher gets a $600 bonus. I believe it is $750. If you
make 110 percent progress, more than a year, you get another
bonus. And we are developing a system whereby if all the childrenyou know, under No Child Left Behinddo it, you get still
a third bonus.
This is not big money, but it is important money. You are rewarding success. You are rewarding the teacher teaching so successfully that the students are learning.
Now, the Teaching Commission under Lou Gerstner, which I
have been serving on along with a lot of other leaders in the country, has been working with States all over the country to develop
approaches to this. I think this is not something you all should
mandate from here because we really dont know how to do it quite
yet. But we are developing ways to do it. We need to measure student learning, and if student learning is outstanding, pay the
teachers more money.
I have found teachers are entrepreneurs. When we started this
system, they said, oh, the teachers wont keep the money, they will
give it to somebody. No. They need the money and they keep the
money.
So I would encourage you all to encourage that as much as you
can. But, in addition to that, of course, we have got to give them
the kind of support they need to have, and I wouldnt want to leave
this town today and go to New York City for a Carnegie Foundation Board meeting without saying that we started the National
Board for Professional Teaching Standards over 20 years ago. I am
looking at members of this committee who got that underway, Senator Dodd and Senator Kennedy in particular at that time, and
many others. You were the Secretary of Education, Mr. Chairman,
and you supported that idea. Not everybody did. We have got about
50,000 nationally board-certified teachers now. One-fourth of them
are in our State of North Carolina, and they are one of the reasons
that in the 1990s our NAEP gains were more than any State in

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America. So I thank you for that, and I hope you will continue to
support it.
Senator ALEXANDER. Thank you.
Senator Dodd.
Senator DODD. Well, thank you, Mr. Chairman, and, Governor,
good to see you again. It is wonderful of you to be here. I cannot
imagine a good conversation about education and not have you be
a part of it, so thank you immensely for all the things you have
done over the years.
One of the reasons I got so interested in this subject matter and
the sense of urgency about it was a quoteand I want to read it,
because it was in this summary of the Rising Storm report here,
Rising above the Gathering Storm. And I want you to address it,
if you would, because it speaks to this issue that I think people do
not understand. I think people have this sort of notion that when
World War II started, we had several years, in fact, some time to
get ready and to build up and then react to things. And one of the
things I found startling in this report was the warning issued by
the authors of this report over the abruptness with which this
change can occur.
I think there is a sense that somehow we will get this right in
time, and I will just read this quote. It says, Although many people assume the United States will always be a world leader in
science and technology, this may not continue to be the case inasmuch as great minds and ideas exist throughout the world. We fear
the abruptness with which a lead in science and technology can be
lost, and the difficulty of recovering a lead once lost, if indeed it
can be regained at all.
Now, I wonder if you might just comment on that particular notion about the abruptness of the change that can occur in the world
we are living in, number one.
No. 2, you made a recommendation which I find very exciting
here, and that is the notion that Congress should ask the National
Academy to set standards in math and science and then incentivize
the States to adopt and develop those standards in math and
science. I wonder if you might develop that thought a little bit.
And, thirdly, could you expand on the comment you made that
was not in your prepared remarks, about the global nature of education. I have lived in a two-room schoolhouse in Connecticut for
the last 25 years. It was the successor schoolhouse to where Nathan Hale taught in the little town I live in. He taught in a oneroom schoolhouse and that schoolhouse got too small. They then
built a two-room schoolhouse. And basically children growing up in
the 1850s in that schoolhouse competed with children from across
the river, and down the roadNew Haven and Hartford. Obviously
in the 20th century, it was children in Connecticut competing with
children in New York or Massachusetts, maybe North Carolina.
The 21st century obviously is a very different place, and yet we are
still basically structurally addressing K12 education as if the educational system involved the house I live in today, the schoolhouse
built in 1853.
And so I wonder if you might develop further what we could to
become much more engaged as a national legislative body in the
K12 education process.

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Governor HUNT. Senator, with regard to the latter statement or
issue, I think it is a matter of saying America has got to take on
this challenge as a Nation. And it is so crucial that the people in
thislisten, there was a time when if you really wanted to do
something about education, all you did was run for the school
board. My wife was on it. Or run for Governor or run for the legislature. And that is where we decided education. And that is still
going to be a big part of it. Locals and the States are going to run
the schools, primarily. But these standards that enable us to compete have now got to be national. I want to call them American
standards. Lets not say national. Lets say American standards.
We have got to have an American effort behind it. We do not ask,
we will send Canada to fight a war in Iraq, although plenty of folks
in my Presbyterian church are going, some of them for the third
time. But that is an American effort. We are in that kind of a contest, folks. It is every bit as important and tough as a military competition. Maybe tougher. And that is why we have got to have an
American effort.
With regard to the abruptness, I think they are exactly right.
Listen to the academies. They have got this right. And lets follow
their advice. It is happening already. I said before some of you
came in here, I was at a board meeting of a company yesterday
where their software engineersthey are beginning to use some in
China and India. I asked a board meeting, How good are they?
I thought they would say, Well, you know, they are not too good,
but we do not pay them as much. They said, They are every bit
as good as the ones we have in America, and we pay them one-fifth
as much.
Now, where do you think the jobs are going to go? And it has
happened suddenly, and they are getting better and better.
I have spoken to those kids on campuses in China and in other
countries around the world. They are bright, they are excited,
thankful to get to learn, and working their heads off. And it has
happened very abruptly, and it is going to happen faster.
One American leader told me they are fixing to cleana business
leader, They are fixing to clean our clock. And that is really true.
The other matter about the national standards, listen, I do not
want to enforce those right now, although, you know, I want it to
happen. But lets go about it in the right way, especially with math
and science, and ask the academies to develop standards, develop
the ways to measure, the assessments, and then lets encourage the
States to do it. And the States, if they know that if you have got
these high standards you are going to get those new companies
coming in, get those new jobsand business will work with us on
thisI think you will see it happen. But you all need to push it.
Senator DODD. Thank you.
Senator ALEXANDER. Senator Kennedy.
Senator KENNEDY. Thank you so much, Governor, for being here.
It is always inspirational to listen to you, as many of us have over
a long period of time. So many have benefitted from your lifetime
of dedication and commitment to education. It has been an extraordinary life of public service that you have had, and we are very,

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very grateful to you for sharing your time today with the committee.
I want to specifically sort of talk about the concept of P16 councils, and what you have done along those lines in North Carolina
to bring together the business community, Government, colleges
and school districts. This cooperation is a key element in terms of
the development of education in your State, and I wanted to underline a point that you made. If the United States is going to be the
number one economy, we have to be the most innovative economy.
And to be an innovative economy, we have to do what you have
suggested, and it is a matter of national security as well. This is
all related to national security, to having the best technology that
is going to be available with the best-trained workers and, best-led
companies. This is a challenging time, and I think an important
point was made as I was listening to the chairman and Senator
Dodd. Its critical to get that sense of urgency out there among the
American people. It is important, because, on the one hand, still
education decisions are going to be made by the school board in Pocatello, but on the other hand their students are going to be competing with people in Shanghai and Beijing and others. So that relationship you have described is essential to ensuring our ability to
compete, and I look forward to reading more carefully about how
that can be done and done so it can have the broadest kind of support, both politically and nationwide.
But what is the magic that you have had in North Carolina? We
have a successful business community in my State and theyve
been instrumental in putting in place our States education reform
efforts. Massachusetts is first in the Nation for 4th grade and 8th
grade on the NAEP reading test. But reforms in Massachusetts
were put in place really before the No Child Left Behind Act, and
then when the No Child came in, the State was really on top of
it. They knew what that was about, and we have got a ways still
to go. But we have seen reductions in achievement gaps that have
been really impressive.
Governor, tell us about how you were able to get each of these
groups together and what a difference that has made, because that
is very unique. Some places have had the business community involved. As I mentioned the business community in Massachusetts
was very involved in getting education reforms implemented. I
think they would welcome the opportunity to build even stronger
partnerships on these issues.
But what has been the mark of the success of that rather unique
partnership? I had the chance to go down to North Carolina and
listen to some people down there a couple of years ago. But what
is the magic of bringing that together?
Governor HUNT. Well, Senator, we thank you for coming on that
occasion, and thank you so much for all your leadership.
The key to it is to talk to people about things they care about
the most. Traditionally in the States, it has been jobs, and it still
is. But it is also Americas security, our military security, being
safe. It is our health care. It is all of these things.
As Governor for 16 years, four terms, I found that when I
partnered with the business community, with the business leaders,
with the IBMs and the GlaxoSmithKlines and all those, and all the

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othersthe banks and all the restfirst, I found they wanted a
partner. They understood. They are the consumers of what we are
turning out. They are the ones who were having to compete around
the world. And I found that they are ready to step up. If they are
asked, they will do it.
I want to call your attention because I have been with them recently, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce now has something new
called the Business Education Network, BEN. I was talking to Tom
Donohue about it a week ago. And I have been urging the U.S.
Chamber to get aboard and to get involved in this. We have had
CED and a lot of others have been working on it. The U.S. Chamber is getting into this now. And I would urge you all here to work
with the business community and with the academies, with all levels, higher education, K12, early childhoodall of this has to be
doneto build this kind of commitment to an America that is the
leading place in the world and will continue to be for innovation.
That is our key. It isyou know, we have got to be thinking of new
things, and if somebody steals it or whatever, we come up with
something new again, more, it just continues to happen from bright
minds. But we have also got to be thinking about how do we teach
creativity. I want every child to get up to grade level, but I want
a lot of these kids to be so bright that they will come up with those
new discoveries which will mean the new technologies and new
products and new businesses, and we have got to continue to do
that. But it is all about education, and thank you so much for the
leadership that all of you at this table and on this committee have
given.
And I would urgeI would leave you with this challenge. I know
Members of Congress like to be on the Finance Committee, and I
know partly why. I understand about Armed Services, and all the
rest of these things. Going forward, this Health, Education, Labor,
and Pensions Committee needs to be the most important committee
in Congress. The new commitments in America need to be in education more than anything else, including health care, by the way.
And I would just urge every one of you hereI am looking at real
leaders. I know who all of you are. I would hope that you would
do the pushing and pulling your partners in, get the business community to pull in folks that maybe do not understand it, just coming from you or educators. Build that kind of powerful partnership
for education, then for economic strength, and national security.
And I thank you very much for letting me come.
Senator ALEXANDER. Thank you, Governor Hunt, and thank you
for staying.
Before you leave, Senator Dodd and Senator Kennedy were not
here when you said what you thought about the PACE report and
the provisions in it, and I wonder if you could speak on it again
in a sentence or two.
Governor HUNT. I support it 100 percent, especially the part
about training 10,000 new teachers and paying supplements, more
money to math and science teachers. We have not been able to
crack that at the State or local level. If you all put the money in,
we will get it done.
Thank you very much.
Senator ALEXANDER. Thank you, Governor Hunt.

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Now, let me ask, Dr. Bement and Dr. Johnson, how is your
schedule. Have you got a few more minutes for us? Let me invite
you to come back and let me ask the other three witnesses to come
back who have not yet testified. I understand we may have votes
at about noon. What I thought I would do is ask the other three
witnesses to take their seats at the table along with you, let us
hear a summary of their testimony, and then let all the Senators
have a chance to ask all of you questions. Would that be acceptable
to you? Thank you. However, at this time I would ask that the
statement of Senator Kennedy be included in the record.
[The prepared statement of Senator Kennedy follows:]
PREPARED STATEMENT

OF

SENATOR KENNEDY

I commend Senator Alexander for convening this second of two

hearings on the critical issue of improving math and science education in this country. I commend him and Senators Bingaman and
Mikulski for their bipartisan work on the PACE Act, and I look forward to working with Chairman Enzi and the rest of the committee
on these critical issues.
Were grateful to Henry Johnson from the Department of Education and Arden Bement from the National Science Foundation for
being here today, as well as Governor Hunt, who has so generously
made the trip from North Carolina.
We know that globalization is creating immense new challenges
for our country, our economy, and our everyday lives. Report after
report shows that America is losing its competitive edge in education. It is unacceptable that American students rank 28th out of
40 countriestied with Latviaon a test of applied math skills.
Weve fallen from 3rd to 15th in the industrialized world in the
production of scientists and engineers. Between 1985 and 2002, the
number of math, science, and engineering graduates in China nearly quadrupled, while the number of U.S. graduates in these fields
grew by only 3 percent. Other Nations are gaining on us because
they give higher priority to education.
To reverse these trends and put America back on the right track,
we must inspire a renaissance in math and science education. But
we wont succeed if our focus is on math and science alone. We
must also ensure a strong educational foundation for every individual. We must make sure that children are prepared for the challenges they face at every grade level, and see that their learning
in elementary and secondary school is aligned with the demands of
college and the 21st century economy. We must make sure as well
that cost is never a barrier to getting a college degree.
The PACE Act includes many important proposals for improving
math and science education, and I commend my colleagues on the
committee for their leadership. The response to the legislation
shows the level of broad bipartisan support for addressing this critical need. And as todays witnesses will demonstrate, these efforts
are already taking root in many places at the local and State level.
I also welcome the Presidents commitment to improving math
and science education to keep America competitive. But if we are
to succeed, our solutions have to rise to the challenge. The Presidents proposals do not go far enough. It is not enough to tinker
at the edges, or to help already talented students advance to the

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next level. A $380 million investment in math and science programs is meaningless in a budget that cuts overall education by
$2.1 billion.
We should do more to increase access to rigorous AP courses for
low-income children, as the President has proposed. Senator Bingaman has been a leader in the Senate on this issue for many years
and Ive been a strong supporter of his efforts. But the reality is
that many students in high poverty schools lack the basic educational foundation to succeed in those courses. One in three 8th
graders attends a school that doesnt even offer algebraa gatekeeper course for advanced AP science and math courses. So we
must take a more comprehensive approach. We must address the
entire school curriculum with that level of commitment if were to
succeed.
The international TIMSS study found that one-third of American
4th graders and one-fifth of American 8th graders cannot perform
basic math functions. We cant get ahead as a Nation if our children dont have those critical skills. We must do more to help
struggling students.
The Presidents Math Now Initiative is modeled after the Reading First program, and we have seen problems in implementing
this program at the local level. Weve heard from schools across
America that say they were pressured into abandoning their reading curriculum, even when it was based in research. Several of us
have asked GAO to investigate the implementation of Reading
First, and the Department of Education Inspector General is investigating financial conflicts of interest in the program. Theres a role
for the Federal Government to play in helping students get ahead
in reading and mathbut narrowing the school curriculum in
these subjects isnt the right approach.
The Presidents proposals also come at the expense of other programs critical to our childrens success. For the second year in a
row, the President has proposed eliminating funding for the Education Technology program, which helps strengthen K12 math
education and prepare students for the jobs of the 21st century. He
has also proposed cutting funds for innovative teacher training programs at the National Science Foundation. Robbing Peter to pay
Paul is not a strategy for success in todays education world.
Over 60 percent of new jobs today require some postsecondary
education, compared to only 15 percent 50 years ago. By 2009, 6
million jobs will go unfilled because our youth will not be qualified
to hold them. To keep America competitive, we need more students
with degrees in math, science, and critical-need foreign languages.
But first and foremost, we must see that every talented student
can afford a college degree.
Half a century ago, we responded to the challenge of Sputnik, by
enacting the National Defense Education Act, which doubled the
Federal investment in education, and led to our dominance in the
arms race and the global economy. This week I am introducing a
New National Defense Education Act to help this generation meet
the modern international challenge.
The bill seeks to modernize the American education system, from
pre-kindergarten through higher education, and arm students with
the 21st century knowledge and skills.

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The bill helps States meet national and international benchmarks and provides grants to States to create P16 Preparedness
Councils to align student learning with the demands of college, the
21st century workforce, and our Armed Forces. It invests in math,
science, and critical-need foreign language teachers for schools in
need. It guarantees students that if they work hard and get into
college, cost will not be a barrier to a degree.
College and graduate school would be tuition-free for low- or
moderate-income students who study science, math, engineering,
technology, or a critical-need language. Funding would be doubled
for NSF education programs, new investments would be made in
math, science, engineering and technology textbooks and laboratories for high-need schools.
We cant keep America competitive unless we invest in a strong
education for everyone, from birth through adulthood. I look forward to hearing from our witnesses today. I know that together we
can fulfill the promise of every child and every student in America.
The Nations future depends on it.
Senator ALEXANDER. Let me introduce the three other witnesses
and ask you to come forward and take your seats.
Tom Rudin is the vice president for Governmental Affairs for
College Board. We were looking forward to having President Gaston Caperton, whom we all know, but he got the flu and couldnt
come today. Please give him our best and we are sorry to miss him.
Also, Joshua Tagore, an outstanding student at the University
High School for Science and Engineering in Hartford, CT, is here.
And we are delighted he is here.
And Peter ODonnell is here, who is a member of the National
Academys Committee that produced The Gathering Storm, and
his work in Dallas is one reason for the inclusion in The Gathering Storm report of the advanced placement recommendations.
So why dont we begin with Mr. Rudin, then go to Mr. ODonnell,
and then Joshua Tagore. And if you can summarize your thoughts
in 5 minutes or even a little less, that will leave the Senators more
time to ask you questions.
Again, Dr. Bement and Dr. Johnson, thank you for your patience.
STATEMENTS OF THOMAS W. RUDIN, VICE PRESIDENT FOR
GOVERNMENT RELATIONS, THE COLLEGE BOARD, NEW
YORK, NY; PETER ODONNELL, JR., PRESIDENT, ODONNELL
FOUNDATION OF DALLAS, DALLAS, TX; AND JOSHUA
TAGORE, STUDENT, UNIVERSITY HIGH SCHOOL FOR
SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING, HARTFORD, CT

Mr. RUDIN. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. Is this on? I
believe it is. My boss, President Caperton, sends his regrets and regards and wishes he could be here. He appreciates this opportunity
and wants to assure you that his absence had nothing to do with
the Fat Tuesday celebrations from last night.
[Laughter.]
He really does have the flu, regrettably.
We are thrilled at the College Board with this new legislation,
and particularly the provisions that have to do with the Advanced
Placement Program. The Advanced Placement Program, as you
know, is a national program of 38 college-level courses offered in

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35
high school. This year, about 1.3 million students will take about
2.3 million AP courses and exams in schools all across the country,
and AP has really become a driver for the kind of education reform,
the kind of rigor that you all are looking for in the PACE legislation. So we are thrilled to see that it is prominent in the bill, and
we are thrilled to be part of the process of hopefully working with
you at all levels to both get the bill passed and to implement the
Advanced Placement components of that legislation.
The AP Program is really about three things, and I will just
highlight those briefly and hopefully save time for questions.
First of all, it is about excellence and high standards. As you
know, AP is college-level work offered at high school. It sets a high
standard, but students who achieve in the AP courses leave high
school ready to excel in college, in work, and especially in math and
science areas. Let me just highlight one statistic that illustrates
this point.
You have heard about the TIMSS studies and how we compare
on a global level in these international assessments. We are next
to last in advanced mathematics among all countries in the world.
But among AP students in the U.S. who score a 3, 4, or 5that
is a passing grade on the AP examthose students are first in the
world in advanced mathematics, and AP students who score a 1 or
2 on the AP exam, that does not get you college credit, but it is
still an achievement. They are second in the world in advanced
mathematics. So AP represents high standards and high rigor.
The second thing about AP is it is a commitment to equity. We
are trying to open the door to AP, and we are not just saying lets
open the door and hope more kids take these courses. We know a
lot more kids can take these courses and excel in them, and let me
give you two examples.
This past year, 107,000 students in the country got a 3, 4, or 5
on the AP calculus exam. But through some analysis and research
we have done that correlates achievement on the PSAT with success in AP calculus, we can identify and we have identified by
name 500,000 additional students who could excel in these AP calculus courses. Senator Alexander, for example, in Tennessee, 1,100
kids got a 3, 4, or 5 in AP calculus last year, but we know the
names of another 8,000 kids in Tennessee who could take and pass
the AP calculus exam if they were just given a chance. But oftentimes the course is not offered. Oftentimes students are not encouraged to take these rigorous courses. So if you are looking for a
quick win, get these courses offered in all American high schools
and open access to them. You will have hundreds of thousands of
students throughout the country taking and succeeding in rigorous
math, science, and world languages courses.
And, finally, AP is a program that already has an existing infrastructure in place. If you fund the AP Program as outlined in the
PACE bill, you do not have to create new teacher training programs. Your colleges and universities already institutes, 1, 2, 3week summer institutes for AP teachers. That infrastructure is in
place. If you fund this program, there are already 130,000 trained
AP teachers out there. The President is calling for 70,000 more,
and we need them, but we have the infrastructure in place to train
them.

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And, finally, the opportunity exists already to offer these AP
exams that are graded by 6,000 teachers every year who come together in a central location, spend 2 weeks grading AP exams, and
giving feedback to the students. The infrastructure exists. Every
dollar you put into AP will go directly to the students and teachers.
And so we strongly urge support for the legislation. We would
love to be part of the team that moves this out into the schools and
districts and makes it work, and we are ready to help you in any
way we can. And we leave you with a final thought that many people see AP as just for the elite kids or so-called select group of kids.
Our experience is that AP is for the prepared student with a highquality teacher. It is not for the elite student. It is for really anybody who is prepared to enter these fields.
Thank you very much.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Caperton follows:]
PREPARED STATEMENT

OF

GASTON CAPERTON

ANCHORING MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE EDUCATION REFORM IN AN EXPANDED

ADVANCED PLACEMENT PROGRAM
INTRODUCTION

The College Board is a national not-for-profit association of more than 5,000 member schools, colleges and universities, with a challenging mission: To connect students to college success. One of the College Boards most ambitious and important
teaching and learning programs is the Advanced Placement Program (AP). As a set
of 38 college-level courses taught in high school, AP has become the most influential
general education program in the country, and it represents the highest standard
of academic excellence in our Nations schools. The Advanced Placement Program
is a collaborative effort between motivated students, dedicated teachers, expert college professors, and committed high schools, colleges, and universities. Ninety percent of the colleges and universities in the United States, as well as colleges and
universities in 30 other countries, have an AP policy granting incoming students
credit, placement or both on the basis of their AP Exam grades. Many of these institutions grant up to a full year of college credit (sophomore standing) to students who
earn a sufficient number of qualifying AP grades. Since its inception in 1955, the
AP Program has allowed millions of students to take college-level courses and
exams, and to earn college credit or placement while still in high school.
This committee is considering legislation that includes a significant role for AP
in improving the quality of science and mathematics education in our Nations
schoolswith the ultimate goal of increasing dramatically the number of high
school graduates who enter college with the desire and ability to succeed in science,
technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields. I commend Senators
Domenici, Alexander, Bingaman and Mikulski for their leadership in introducing
the PACE Act, and I applaud the more than 60 co-sponsors for their support of this
important national initiative. The College Board strongly urges committee approval
of this legislation. We especially believe that support for an expanded AP math and
science program in this Nation will contribute to raising standards and achievement
in all of our high schools. The AP Program benefits both the students who take AP
courses and those who do not take AP by promoting more rigorous standards and
higher quality teaching in all classes. As such, a significant investment in the expansion of AP math and science programs will have a profound effect on the overall
quality of math and science education in our Nations schools, colleges and universities.
AP is a 50-year-old, time-tested program with an existing infrastructure of tens
of thousands of teachers and a network of hundreds of training sites across the
country. Funds invested in this program will not need to be dedicated to creating
a new system for teacher professional development, course development, or the administration and scoring of assessments. That system already exists as a result of
our efforts over the past 50 years, and as a result of the involvement of thousands
of schools, colleges and universities in the operation of the AP Program. Thus, new
Federal dollars invested in AP can go directly into the teacher training and student
preparation and support that you envision, and that can ensure the success of this
initiative.

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THE AP PROGRAM

Let me say a few words about the AP Program generally, and then focus specifically on AP mathematics and science courses. The principles and values of the AP
Program can be stated quite simply:
AP supports academic excellence. AP represents a commitment to high standards, hard work, and enriched academic experiences for students, teachers and
schools.
AP is about equity. The AP Program should be open to all students, and we
believe that every student should have access to AP courses and should be given
the support he or she needs to succeed in these challenging courses.
AP can drive school-wide academic reform. Schools that use AP as an anchor
for setting high standards and raising expectations for all students see significant
returns not just in terms of AP participation but in terms of increasing the overall
quality and intensity of their academic programs.
Across the Nation, every State and most school districts are exploring ways to
raise standards and ensure that all students take challenging courses in science and
mathematics that prepare them for success in college and work. AP is recognized
as a powerful tool for increasing academic rigor, improving teacher quality, and creating a culture of excellence in high schools. Where AP Programs flourish, schools
and districts use the AP Program to support a cohesive school culture that promotes
both rigor and college-going aspirations. Students who take AP courses assume the
intellectual responsibility of thinking for themselves, and they learn how to engage
the world critically and analyticallyboth inside and outside of the classroom. This
is an invaluable experience for students as they prepare for college or work upon
graduation from high school. Moreover, schools in which AP is widely offeredand
accessible to all studentsexperience the diffusion of higher standards throughout
the entire school curriculum.
Superintendents and principals recognize the value of AP as leverage to increase
opportunity and achievement for all students. One principal from Lincolnshire, Illinois, cited the role of AP as a driver for improving all students readiness for college
and work:
AP is helping more of our students develop the skills and confidence they need
to succeed. Most of our graduates who have participated in the program report
being exceptionally well prepared for the challenges of college. Feedback like this
reinforces our commitment to expanding college-level opportunities for all of our students.1
The Federal AP Incentive Program (APIP), which currently provides $32 million
in Federal funding for AP expansion, mostly to increase AP access and success
among underrepresented students, is working. Since its inception in 2000, more
than 100 grants to States and districts have resulted in programs that have touched
the lives of students throughout the Nation and promoted a college-going culture,
encouraging more of our Nations students to set high goals for themselves. The Advanced Placement Programs official Equity Policy Statement calls for schools to
make every effort to ensure that their AP classes reflect the diversity of their student population. From 2000 to 2005, the total number of students in the Nation
with AP Exam grades of 3, 4 or 5 (passing grades that earn college credit) has
grown from 494,000 to 742,000. Among African-American students, the number of
AP Exams with grades of 3, 4 or 5 has grown from 18,000 to 30,000; among Latino
students, the number of AP Exams with grades of 3, 4 or 5 has grown from 63,000
to 110,500.
This growth in AP is important to students, parents, schools, and districtsand
to the Federal Governmentfor a number of reasons:
First, the most important predictor of college success for a student is not his or
her high school GPA, his or her SAT score, or his or her extracurricular activities.
Rather, it is the quality and rigor of his or her high school courses. Research shows
that students who take more rigorous courses, such as Algebra II, trigonometry and
AP Calculus, are the most likely to enroll in and complete college. Additionally, AP
is a powerful predictor of college success. By providing students with the opportunity to enroll in challenging courses during high school, it is more likely that
these students will have the confidence and motivation to set and achieve high
standards for themselves and will be encouraged to enroll and succeed in college.
Second, students who take AP can earn college credit, which can save parents
money spent on tuition and fees. In Tennessee, for example, students who take a
semesters worth of AP and earn college credit on the exams can save $3,000$5,000
1 Dan Galloway, Principal, Adlai E. Stevenson High School, Lincolnshire, Illinois, as cited in
the 2001 AP Yearbook, College Board.

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in tuition and fees in the States public colleges and universities, and much more
at private institutions. By enrolling in AP classes during high school, students are
able to academically prepare themselves for college, and take advantage of financial
savings for their future.
Third, schools, districts and even State departments of education value the impact
of AP. Students who complete AP courses are not only prepared for the rigors of
college, they are extremely well prepared for the assessments required by NCLB.
It is the College Boards experience that the rigorous work required in AP helps students master subject matter and prepares them for any type of assessment challenge they might face, including State accountability tests and college entrance
exams.
Most AP participants are 11th and 12th grade students, but the proportion of
lower-grade examinees has been growing. In the latest school year, 44 percent of
the AP examinees were 12th graders and 38 percent were 11th graders, while lowergrade and other examinees accounted for 17 percent of all examinees. This latter
group, comprised mostly of 10th graders, has grown from 11 percent in 2000. With
regard to numbers of exams, 12th graders are more likely to take multiple exams,
accounting for 52 percent of total exams in the 2005 school year, but this dominance
has been steadily decreasing as other grades have been growing at a faster pace.
The strong presence of 10th graders setting, and often achieving, high standards for
themselves reinforces the idea that implementation of AP enhances a rigorous
school culture.
AP MATHEMATICS AND SCIENCE COURSES

I share your belief, which is reflected in the PACE Act, that increasing rigorous
math and science education in the U.S. will significantly boost our high school graduates math and science proficiencyand also increase the number of students who
enter college ready to succeed in science, technology, engineering and mathematics
(STEM) career paths. And we urgently need to create those opportunities for our
students. Today, only 32 percent of American undergraduates are earning degrees
in science and engineering, compared to 66 percent of undergraduates in Japan, 59
percent in China and 36 percent in Germany. In 2004, China graduated 600,000 engineers, India graduated 350,000, and the United States graduated 70,000.2
The AP Program is an important tool in this Nations efforts to increase our economic competitiveness. AP math and science students are much more likely than
other students to major in STEM disciplines than students whose first exposure to
college-level math and science courses is in college. For example:
Sixteen percent of students who take AP Chemistry go on to major in chemistry
in college. By way of contrast, only 34 percent of students who take general chemistry instead of AP chemistry major in that field in college.
More than 25 percent of students who take AP Calculus go on to major in mathematics in colleges, and 40 percent of students who take AP physics major in physics in college.
Further, research indicates that AP math and science courses prepare American
students to achieve a level of proficiency that exceeds that of students from all other
Nations. For example, in the most recent TIMSS assessments, U.S. Calculus students ranked #15 (out of 16 countries) in the international advanced mathematics
assessment. But AP Calculus students who scored a 3 or better on the AP Calculus
Exam ranked first in the world. Even AP Calculus students who scored a 1 or 2
on the AP Calculus Exambelow the passing scorewere ranked second in the
world. AP Physics students, as compared to other U.S. physics students and physics
students internationally, were also at the top of the ranking.
Most significantly, there are many, many more U.S. students who can succeed in
AP math and science coursesif they are simply given the chance. This year in the
United States, we anticipate that more than 100,000 students will earn a grade of
3 or above on the AP Calculus Examthe grade typically required for college credit.
But in a national analysis of the math proficiency of students enrolled in U.S. high
schools during the 200506 academic year, we can identify, by name and school, an
additional 500,000 students who have the same academic backgrounds and likelihood of success in AP Calculus as the 100,000 students who currently are fortunate
enough to have an AP Calculus course available. If we look at Biology, we see an
even larger gap; we expect that about 74,000 students will earn exam grades of 3
2 Committee on Science, Engineering and Public Policy. Rising Above the Gathering Storm:
Energizing and Employing America for a Brighter Economic Future. National Academies Press,
2006. This report notes that America appears to be on a losing path today with regard to our
future competitiveness and standard of living.

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or higher on the AP Biology Exam this year, whereas we know that at least 640,000
additional U.S. students have the academic skills that would enable them to succeed
in AP Biology if they only had a course available to them and the encouragement
to take on this challenge. There are literally hundreds of thousands of high school
students in the United States who are prepared and ready to succeed in rigorous
high school courses such as AP Calculus, AP Biology, AP Physics and AP Chemistry.
In many cases, the only thing preventing them from learning at this higher level
is the lack of an AP teacher in their school or the lack of adequate encouragement
and support to take the AP course.
It is important to note that participation in AP increases the likelihood that students will graduate from college within 4 years. Strong correlations exist between
taking AP math and science (and all other AP subjects) and college completion.
Sixty-one percent of students who have taken two AP courses in high school graduate from college in 4 years or less. Forty-five percent of students who have taken
one AP course graduate from college in 4 years or less. Only 29 percent of students
who have not taken an AP course will graduate in 4 years or less.
One concern that I have heard expressed about increasing the investment in AP
is the notion that this takes funding away from other education programs. It is our
belief that we need much more funding for all education programs if this Nation
is to maintain our position of leadership in terms of economic competitiveness in the
21st century. The education piece of the pie needs to get larger, not smaller. Fortunately, the PACE Act is actually designed to do much more than launch new AP
courses in U.S. schools. In fact, it is designed to provide States with resources for
increasing the rigor and quality of their math and science programs in grades 6
11, using AP as a 12th grade anchor from which their schools can implement a curriculum that sequentially prepares students for the rigor of AP and college. The
high standards embodied in 12th grade AP courses are just one piece of the proposed legislation, which also provides funding for professional development and student preparation in the math and science courses taught in grades 611. By anchoring the 612 math and science programs in a 12th grade AP math or science course,
each grade level will foster a set of higher expectations and higher learning than
is currently required and delivered in most U.S. schools. Moreover, the PACE Act
is explicit in calling for increased access to AP math and science courses among students from all socioeconomic backgrounds. We share your equity commitment, and
we believe that traditionally underrepresented students have the greatest need for
access to rigorous course work in math, science, foreign language and culture and
many other areas. If we are to maintain our position in the world, access to rigorous
college-preparatory experiences in the STEM fields must be open to all students.
The College Board believes AP has tremendous potential to drive reform in a powerful way in all of our Nations schools. No single program can have as strong an
impact on overall student and teacher quality as AP. AP is not for the elite, it is
for the prepared. Your support for expanded AP math and science courses and
exams will prepare many more students for the opportunity to succeed in STEM
fields in college and work. We respectfully urge your strong support for the PACE
legislation.

Senator ALEXANDER. Mr. ODonnell.

Mr. ODONNELL. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I have been invited
to testify about improving student performance in mathematics and
science as called for in the National Academy Gathering Storm
report, and I am pleased to do so. I will focus on the Advanced
Placement Incentive Programs which are the subject of the National Academy report, as well as the PACE legislation, and the
Presidents American Competitiveness Initiative.
Advanced Placement is an excellent program that works to improve academic performance. Incentives work to accelerate the
growth of Advanced Placement, especially among minorities. I will
show you data to demonstrate that.
The Advanced Placement Incentive Program succeeds because of
three fundamental concepts: the high standards of Advanced Placement, which is built on a strong curriculum, rigorous national
exams, and measurable results; emphasis on excellent teacher
training; and financial incentives for teachers and students. Incentives are key to the success of our program. They provide extra pay

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for extra work and are paid by private donors. The incentives are
listed on page 1 of the handout at your desk. I trust you all have
that.
For the past 15 years, the ODonnell Foundation has supported
AP incentives programs in math, science, and English in Texas
with the goal of preparing students to enter college and earn a degree. Our program, which is voluntary and open to all, is in 198
high schools. We are now in 60 districts.
I want to begin by showing you data beginning in 1995 for 10
public high schools in Dallas, which is the 12th largest school district in the country and has a 93-percent minority enrollment. Page
2 of your handout shows that passing scores in AP math, science,
and English in Dallas have increased 7.6 times in 10 years. Passing scores on only math and science exams increased almost 10
times.
Page 4 shows that minority passing scores on AP math, science,
and English exams have increased 17.8 times, and page 5I particularly want you to look at thatshows that minority scores on
only math and science exams have increased 33 times in 10 years.
When measured per thousand juniors and seniors, the minority
students in Dallas pass at a rate nearly 3 times that of minority
students in the United States.
As you have just heard from Tom Rudin, AP enables students to
successfully compete internationally in math and science. Page 7
shows that our AP calculus students scored higher than students
in every other country in the TIMSS math problems, compared to
the U.S. as a whole, which was second from the bottom. Our AP
physics students scored above all but one country, whereas the U.S.
was the very bottom.
The big payoff for AP students is a high rate of graduation for
college. I invite your close attention to the chart on page 8, which
shows the 6-year graduation rate from Texas public universities by
ethnic group and based on whether or not they passed an AP exam
in the core academic subjects. You can see the startling difference
between taking and passing AP and not, and it is true for all ethnic
groups.
Very significant, lifetime earnings for a person with a bachelors
degree are over $2 million. A college degree effectively ends poverty
for that person. We have developed several implementation features. First is a nonprofit organization that manages the program
statewide, and that is part of our national committee recommendation. This has allowed us to scale up quickly while maintaining
quality. Second are the master teachers who implement the program in their districts. Third is a three-way contract between the
school district, a private donor, and statewide organization. This
not only shares the financial burden, it lets the school know that
the local community is supportive of the AP program. We now have
52 private partners in Texas. I think that could be a model for each
State and gets you not only the cost sharing but the partnership
you want.
The next step was to build on the success of Advanced Placement
by training pre-AP math and science teachers for grades 6 through
11 and a program we call Laying the Foundation. This program
provides the curriculum, benchmarks, and training teachers need

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to begin preparing students in the 6th grade to master AP courses
in grades 11 and 12. In Texas today, we are training nearly 7,000
pre-AP teachers.
If you could give me just one of those books?
We have a separate book. This is biology. And we have one for
each grade, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10 for English, math, and science, and
it has what the teachers needin many cases, there are appropriate textbooks. We have what the teachers need to begin to teach
these students to a high level, and these courses are aligned with
the National Academy standards, the College Board standards, and
in our case, the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills.
When fully deployed, pre-AP will provide an enormous boost for
all students by giving them an early start and putting a focus on
the important goal of graduating both from high school and from
college.
In conclusion, AP works to improve student performance in math
and science. Incentives work to accelerate the growth of AP, especially for minorities, and we have the data to demonstrate that. I
believe the Senate can enact this legislation with confidence that
the programs will be implemented and that they will work.
Thank you very much.
Senator ALEXANDER. Thank you, and thank for being a pioneer
in this area.
[The prepared statement of Mr. ODonnell follows:]
PREPARED STATEMENT

OF

PETER ODONNELL, JR.

Mr. Chairman and members of the committee, thank you for this opportunity to
appear before you on behalf of the National Academies Committee on Prospering
in the Global Economy of the 21st Century. As you know, our effort was sponsored
by the National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering and Institute of Medicine.
During my testimony, I will focus on the challenges that we are facing in K
through 12 education. The committee believes the education issue is the most critical challenge the United States is facing if our children and grandchildren are to
inherit ever-greater opportunities for high-quality, high-paying jobs. Our solution
and recommendations to respond to the Nations challenge in K12 science, mathematics, engineering, and technology education are the committees top priority.
In examining the issue of K12 science and mathematics education, the committee
found the following:
Fewer than one-third of U.S. 4th grade and 8th grade students performed at
or above a level called proficient in mathematics; proficiency was considered the
ability to exhibit competence with challenging subject matter. Alarmingly, about
one-third of the 4th graders and one-fifth of the 8th graders lacked the competence
to perform even basic mathematical computations.1
In 1995 (the most recent data available), U.S. 12th graders performed below the
international average for 21 countries on a test of general knowledge in mathematics and science.2
U.S. 15-year-olds ranked 24th out of 40 countries that participated in a 2003
administration of the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) examination, which assessed students ability to apply mathematical concepts to realworld problems.3
According to a recent survey, 86 percent of U.S. voters believe that the United
States must increase the number of workers with a background in science and
1 National Center for Education Statistics. (2006), The Nations Report Card: Mathematics
2005. (http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/pdf/main2005/2006453.pdf).
2 National Center for Education Statistics (1999), Highlights from TIMSS (http://nces.ed.gov/
pubs99/1999081.pdf).
3 National Center for Education Statistics (2005), International Outcomes of Learning in
Mathematics Literacy and Problem Solving: PISA 2003 Results from the U.S. Perspective, pp.
15 & 29 (http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2005/2005003.pdf).

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mathematics or Americas ability to compete in the global economy will be diminished.4
American youth spend more time watching television 5 than in school.6
Because the United States does not have a set of national curricula, changing
K12 education is challenging, given that there are almost 15,000 school systems
in the United States and the average district has only about 6 schools.7
Yesterday, Roy Vagelos, another member of the National Academies Committee,
discussed the committees actions related to improving the quality of Americas K
12 science and mathematics teachers. This includes recruiting 10,000 of Americas
brightest students to the teaching profession and strengthening the skills of 250,000
current teachers through training and education programs.
These recommendations will provide public schools in the U.S. with outstanding
math and science teachers on a scale equal to the size of the problem. The recommendations are based on six concepts:
1. High standards;
2. Measurable results;
3. Integrated curriculum for math and science for grades 612;
4. Quality teacher training that is based on content;
5. Incentives to teachers and students based on academic results;
6. Implementation vehicle in each State to manage the programs to ensure quality
control and accountability.
There is general agreement that these six concepts will strengthen education, especially in math and science.
Today, I will focus on the actions we recommend that are designed to improve opportunities for students to learn and master advanced mathematics and science.
This includes the Advanced Placement Incentive Program and developing rigorous,
but voluntary, national K12 science and math curricula. In addition, I will briefly
discuss two other activities the committee believed was useful to expandstatewide
specialty high schools and inquiry-based learning through summer internships and
research opportunities for students.
The top program that the committee proposes for students involves enlarging the
pipeline of students who are prepared to enter college and graduate with a degree
in science, engineering, or mathematics by increasing the number of students who
pass AP and IB science and mathematics courses. The proposed program would create opportunities and incentives for middle school and high school students to pursue advanced work in science and mathematics. The committee recommends that
the number of students who take at least one AP or IB mathematics or science exam
should be increased from 380,000 in 2004 to 1.5 million by 2010.
The committee also recommends setting a goal of tripling the number of students
who pass those tests from 230,000 in 2004 to 700,000 by 2010. Students would receive incentives to both take and pass the exam including a rebate of 50 percent
of their examination fee and a $100 mini-scholarship for each passing score on an
AP or IB science or mathematics examination.
The reason we are encouraging more students to participate in AP/IB courses is
because research has shown that those students who take AP/IB courses are twice
as likely to enter and complete college as those who do not.
There is an AP incentive program in the Dallas public schools. It is based on the
highly successful Advanced Placement program of the College Board which offers
college-level courses taught in high school by high school teachers. Students who
score a 3, 4 or 5 on AP exams are eligible for credit at most colleges and universities
in the United States. For all students, especially minority students, AP is an educational coin that cannot be devalued. A 3 on an AP exam in typical high schools
4 The Business Roundtable 2006. Innovation and U.S. Competitiveness: Addressing the Talent
Gap.
Public
Opinion
Research.
January
12.
Available
at:
(http://
www.businessroundtable.org/pdf/20060112Two-pager.pdf).
5 American Academy of Pediatrics. TelevisionHow it Affects Children. Available at: (http:/
/www.aap.org/pubed/ZZZGF8VOQ7C.htm?&subcat=1). The American Academy of Pediatrics
reports that Children in the United States watch about 4 hours of TV every day; this works
out to be 1,460 hours per year.
6 National Center for Education Statistics 2005. The Condition of Education. Table 262 Average Number of Instructional Hours Per Year Spent in Public School, By Age or Grade of Student
and Country: 2000 and 2001. Available at: (http://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/2005/section4/
table.asp?tableID=284). NCES reports that in 2000 U.S. 15 year-olds spent 990 hours in school,
during the same year 4th graders spent 1,040 hours.
7 National Center for Education Statistics (2006), Public Elementary and Secondary Students,
Staff, Schools, and School Districts: School Year 200304. (http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2006/
2006307.pdf).

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across America is just as good as 3 on an AP exam at The Boston Latin School.
AP has a proven track record with high standards and measurable results.
New concepts were added in Dallas to strengthen the College Boards AP program:
Financial incentives for teachers and students based on exam results.
Master AP teachers who teach at least one AP course and help mentor the new
AP teachers in their school.
Teacher training that is high quality, content-based and specifically designed
for AP success. The College Boards excellent summer institutes for teachers are essential to the success of AP teachers.
More time on task for students, including tutoring outside school hours and
prep sessions on Saturdays.
Professional management of the program by a nonprofit statewide organization
run by outstanding AP teachers.
The program is voluntary and open to all teachers and students.
The academic focus of the AP Incentive Program is the seventh AP math and
science course: calculus, statistics, computer science, biology, chemistry, physics and
environmental science. AP English Language and English Literature are also included. The incentives are shown in (Exhibit 1).
In 1995, the ODonnell Foundation began an AP incentive program in 10 high
schools in the Dallas Independent School District (DISD). This district of 158,000
students has a 93 percent minority enrollment and 82 percent of the students are
economically disadvantaged. Nevertheless, students are achieving outstanding AP
results.
Thirty-three percent of the junior and senior students in the Dallas incentive
schools take at least one AP exam in math, science or English. This is over 2 times
greater than the national average. (See Exhibit 2).
In 2005, students took 3,567 exams, an increase of 9.4 times since the year before
the program began in 1995. (See Exhibit 3).
While the number of candidates and exams taken are important, the real measure
of AP success is the number of passing scores. Passing scores on AP exams in math,
science and English have increased 7.6 times during the 10 years of the program.
(Exhibit 4).
Success among minority students is even more dramatic. Since the inception of
the Dallas AP incentive program, the number of African-American and Hispanic
students passing AP exams in college-level math and science and English has increased nearly 18 times, from 29 in 1995 to 517 in 2005. (See Exhibit 5).
To compare one school to another or to a State or to the U.S., results can be measured per 1,000 juniors and seniors. Today Dallas minority students pass nearly
three times as many AP exams in math, science and English as minority students
in the United States. (See Exhibit 6).
Female students have increased their passing scores in AP math, science and
English by 8.4 times in 10 years. (See Exhibit 7).
Data from the Dallas model demonstrates that AP works for all types of students.
The success rate of minority and female students is especially encouraging as they
will be a very important part of our future workforce.
The Dallas AP incentive model is a partnership between the local school district
and the private sector, with private donations supporting teacher training, as well
as teacher and student incentives. At about the same time that the Dallas incentive
program began, the State of Texas authorized and funded the Texas AP Incentive
Program which provides State funded incentives for teacher training ($450 a year
per teacher) and exam stipends of $30 per student. The State incentive program,
also, has seen impressive gains in AP participation. Passing scores on AP math,
science and English are up 3 times in Texas. (See Exhibit 8).
Results for minority students in the same subjects are up 4.8 times under the
State funded incentive program in Texas. (See Exhibit 9).
It is very important to note that AP enables U.S. students to successfully compete
internationally in math and science. Our AP calculus student score higher than students in every other country on the TIMSS test math problems, whereas the U.S.
was second from the bottom. Our AP physics students scored above all but one country, whereas the U.S. was the very bottom. (See Exhibit 10).
Also important to our countrys future is the high rate at which AP students earn
college degrees. In Texas public universities, the 6 year graduation rate for AP
Anglo students is 72 percent, compared to 30 percent for those who did not pass
an AP exam. AP Hispanic students have a 6 year graduation rate of 62 percent,
compared to 15 percent for those who did not pass AP exams. And 60 percent of

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African-American students graduate in 6 years, while only 17 percent of those who
did not pass AP graduate in that time. (See Exhibit 11).
Consider that lifetime earnings for a person with a bachelors degree are over $2
million. This will end poverty for that person. It is especially important for minorities.
With these encouraging results from both private and State AP incentive programs, Texas has taken the next steps to accelerate AP success.
(1) Private donors created a non-profit organization, Advanced Placement Strategies, Inc. (APS) to implement AP incentive programs on a broad scale. APS is run
by master AP teachers. They manage programs in the schools and are also responsible to the private donors for managing their financial support. APS is proving to
be a successful implementation vehicle for expanding AP in Texas. It operates in
69 school districts in Texas, in 198 high schools and 308 middle schools. APS is currently training nearly 7,800 AP and pre-AP teachers. APS operates by three-way
partnerships among the school district, a private donor in the local community and
APS.
The Gathering Storm report states that implementation of the AP-IB and pre-APIB recommendations in each State would require the creation of a non-profit organization staffed by talented master teachers who would help local schools manage
the program and enforce high standards.
(2) Recognizing that education should begin in the 6th grade to enlarge the pipeline of AP students, APS developed a series of teachers guides, called Laying the
Foundation, for each grade, 6 through 11, in pre-AP math and science. The guides
are designed to help teach the content and analytical skills that students need to
master beginning in the 6th grade in order to be successful in AP math and science
in the 11th and 12th grades. Pre-AP teachers are required to complete an intensive
training course. Beginning in the spring of 2006, end-of-course tests modeled on the
national AP exam, will be available to measure student progress in each of the
benchmarks that are essential to good understanding of AP concepts. (See Exhibit
12).
The National Academy report recommends training 80,000 teachers currently in
the classrooms to be outstanding pre-AP and IB teachers of math and science. This
is critical given the disturbing number of teachers who teach outside their own field
of study. According to the National Center for Education Statistics in 19992000,
69 percent of mathematics teachers and 93 percent of physical science teachers in
grades 58 had no major or certification in mathematics or science. When fully deployed, pre-AP will provide an enormous boost for all students giving them an early
start and putting a focus on the important goal of graduating both from high school
and from college.
In summary, Advanced Placement is a program that works to improve academic
performance. Incentives work to accelerate the growth of AP, especially among minorities. We have the data to prove it. I believe that the Senate can support these
concepts with the confidence that they will work.
Of particular interest to the National Academy Committee is the ability of programs such as the University of California College Prep Program to reach currently
underserved areas or populations of students with specific learning needs through
online access to teachers and tutors.
The committee is pleased that this proposed action is part of the Presidents
American Competitiveness Initiative.
The committee also proposes that high-quality teaching be fostered with worldclass curricula, standards, and assessments of student learning. Here, the committee recommends that the Department of Education convene a national panel to collect, evaluate, and develop rigorous K12 materials that would be available free of
charge as a voluntary national curriculum.
The model for this recommendation is Project Lead the Way (PLTW)a national
program with partners in public schools, colleges and universities, and the private
sector. PLTW is now offered in 45 States and the District of Columbia. The project
has developed a 4-year sequence of courses that, when combined with college preparatory mathematics and science, introduces students to the scope, rigor, and discipline of engineering technology. PLTW also has developed a middle school technology curriculum, Gateway to Technology. Students participating in PLTW courses
are better prepared for college engineering programs than those exposed only to the
more traditional curricula. Comprehensive teacher education is a critical component
of PLTW, and the curriculum uses cutting-edge technology and software that require specialized education. Continuing education supports teachers as they implement the program and provides for continuous improvement of skills.

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The committee also proposed expansion of two additional approaches to improving
K12 science and mathematics education that are already in usestatewide specialty schools and inquiry-based learning.
Statewide specialty high schools are an effective way to increase student achievement in science and mathematics by providing an intensive learning experience for
high-performing students. These schools immerse students in high-quality science
and mathematics education, serve as testing grounds for curricula and materials,
provide in-classroom educational opportunities for K12 teachers, and have the resources and staff for summer programs to introduce students to science and mathematics.
One model for this program is the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics (NCSSM), which opened in 1980. NCSSM enrolls juniors and seniors from
most of North Carolinas 100 counties. NCSSMs unique living and learning experience made it the model for 16 similar schools around the world. It is the first school
of its kind in the Nationa public, residential high school where students study a
specialized science and mathematics curriculum. At NCSSM, teachers come for a
sabbatical year, and the school has a structure and the personnel it needs to offer
summer institutes for outstanding students.
Inquiry-based learning such as summer research programs stimulate student interest and achievement in science, mathematics, and technology should be encouragedparticularly those designed to stimulate low-income and minority student
participation. These programs frequently involve several institutions or publicprivate partnerships.
The PACE legislation package is harmonious with our committees recommendations and proposed actions for educating a new workforce and leadership in science
and engineering. We are particularly pleased that the PACE-Education bills Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureates program authorizes the Secretary of Education to award grants to nonprofit entities to work with local school
districts to provide training to teachers to teach Advanced Placement or International baccalaureate (AP/IB) and pre-AP/IB programs and that it also had the
goal of increasing the number of students who take pre-AB/IB and AP/IB courses
and who pass the AP/IB exams in mathematics and science.
By taking the actions proposed in the National Academies Gathering Storm report, we believe that excellent teachers and increasing numbers of students meeting
high academic standards will become the academic reality. When this happens, the
United States will be better positioned to compete as a country for high-quality,
high-paying jobs for all Americans.
Thank you for providing me with this opportunity to testify before the committee.
I would be pleased to answer any questions you have about the report.

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Senator ALEXANDER. Senator Dodd is going to introduce our next
witness.
Senator DODD. Mr. Chairman, if we get this right, I want you to
meet the future. He is the youngest panel member we have here
today, but I had a chance to meet Josh a few weeks ago when I
held a hearing on this very subject matter at the University High
School in Hartford, CT. The University of Hartford has developed
a program, a magnet school, concentrating on math and science
and engineering. Walter Harrison is the President of that university, and in conjunction with the public school system in Hartford,
has attracted students to come who have a strong interest in these
areas. Josh was one of the witnesses that day.
He is actually a stellar child and has a perfect record in almost
everything, except that he is a Yankees fan.
[Laughter.]
I hope today maybe I will be able to persuade him at some point
in the questioning to think that the Red Sox are a better team. We
are divided constituencies in Connecticut. You can divide the State
right down the middle, Yankees fans and Red Sox fans.
Josh, thanks for coming today, and let me just briefly tell folks
a little bit about you.
I told you where Josh goes to school, and prior to attending the
University High School at the University of Hartford, Joshua attended a Hartford magnet school, where he developed a love for
mathematics and science, winning honors in physical science and
biology in two statewide and citywide science fairs. He participated
in the Connecticut pre-engineering program, a summer program,
and was honored as the valedictorian of his class. His experience
at the University High School has afforded him an extensive exposure to the fields of science, math and engineering. He recently
took part in an independent study summer internship program at
Trinity Collegethis is a sophomore in high school, I remind you
a noncurriculum experience facilitated by his principal, Dr. Betty
Colli, who is a remarkable woman and does a fantastic job.
He is currently considering careers in biomedical engineering,
neurosurgery or cardiology. In his spare time, Josh enjoys reading
and writing, swimming and biking, and his favorite baseball team,
regrettably, is the Yankees.
If you want to know what can happen, in one small place, in the
city of Hartford, CT, with a university working with a city, youll
want to listen to this. This could be the future if we get it right,
and so, Josh, I thank you for coming today to give us a glimpse of
what the 21st century could look like for America if we pay attention to people like you.
Mr. TAGORE. Thank you, Senator Dodd.
Good morning, Senator Alexander, Senator Dodd, esteemed members of the Subcommittee on Education and Early Childhood Development. I am Joshua Tagore from the University High School of
Science and Engineering in Hartford, CT. It is an honor to meet
you all and to represent the University High School of Science and
Engineering, along with my vice principal, Dr. Lefkoff. I am proud
to be part of the effort to help make our country more competitive
in the fields of science and mathematics. I am here to testify on
S. 2198, the Protecting Americas Competitive Edge (PACE) Act.

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Let me begin with a bit of personal background. I attended parochial schools and mainstream public schools through the 6th grade.
At the end of the 6th grade, my parents and I made the difficult
decision to leave the Avon Public Schools, one of the finest school
systems in Connecticut. I enrolled at the Hartford Magnet Middle
School to take advantage of the benefits of the magnet schools
unique approach to education.
During my time at the Hartford Magnet Middle School, I gained
a stronger love for mathematics and science, two of the schools
areas of specialty. While in middle school, I participated in two
statewide science fairs, and the citywide science fair. My participation in the city and the State science fairs helped to fuel my love
for math and science.
Upon leaving middle school, my parents wanted me to attend a
school that could accommodate my growing interest in math and
science. My pursuit for knowledge in these fields was met when I
enrolled at the University High School of Science and Engineering.
I am currently a sophomore at the University High School, a
high school affiliated with the University of Hartford. Since being
accepted to the school almost 2 years ago, I have gained an extraordinary amount of knowledge, and can say that I have participated
in classes that the typical high school sophomore does not get the
opportunity to experience. Some of the opportunities that were
made available to me include course work in physics and engineering as a freshman, and advanced placement biology as a sophomore, which is a course designated for juniors and seniors in high
school.
The class schedule was designed to be similar to that of a college
student. We take all honors courses, and are offered four possible
math-based courses as freshmen, algebra, geometry, algebra II, integrated math, as well as physics and engineering.
Another benefit of being enrolled in this extraordinary learning
environment is being surrounded by teachers who have a tremendous amount of insight, experience and knowledge about what they
teach. Students are challenged to think analytically and pursue
learning vigorously.
The most recent benefit of my magnet school experience was an
independent study summer internship at Trinity College. This incredible experience was birthed in a most unusual manner. Almost
every week students are exposed to career professionals in the
areas of science, mathematics, technology and engineering. It was
through one of these weekly presentations last school year that I
learned of a summer research program on the campus of Trinity
College. After expressing a strong interest in the program to my
principal, Dr. Betty Colli, she made arrangements for me to participate in the internship. This gave me the opportunity to work in a
college-style laboratory as an intern among college students who
were in their junior and senior years.
In the summer of 2005, my fellow researchers and I studied an
area of the brain called the hippocampus, which is responsible for
learning and memory. As a result of participating in this internship, I gained an extensive amount of knowledge on how the brain
functions. I leaned how the brain sends signals, how those signals

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54
are received, and how the signals make a person perform an activity.
In addition to gaining extensive knowledge about the brain, I became very familiar with the research environment on a college
campus, thanks to the guidance of my research colleagues and our
professor. From these individuals I learned that before you enter
college you must establish a good work ethic, which entails acquiring effective time management skills, showing up for whatever you
are doing on time, and that you must be proved to be dependable
in a fashion that benefits all of your fellow colleagues.
This summer experience made a tremendous impact upon my
life. Not only did I learn about the brain and the proper work ethic,
but I also gained firsthand experience on what could possibly become my future career interests. As a direct consequence of my
magnet school experience, I am currently considering career interests in the fields of biomedical engineering, neurosurgery or cardiology. I have learned how mathematics and all three areas of
sciencephysics, chemistry and biologyare related, and play an
important role in our everyday lives.
Current enrollment at the University High School since its establishment 2 years ago, is 200 students. Sixty four percent of them
are boys, while 36 percent are girls. Two hundred students at University High School in Hartford is a start, not a final destination.
I believe that if more high school students are exposed to this kind
of unique learning experience as a routine part of their high school
careers, as I was in my freshman year, we could help to shape a
Nation of young adults, gaining interest in careers involving math
and science. In this new millennium, the future of our country depends on it.
Thanks for your attention, and again, it has been an honor.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Tagore follows:]
PREPARED STATEMENT

OF

JOSHUA R. TAGORE

Good morning Senator Alexander, Senator Dodd, esteemed Members of the Subcommittee on Education and Early Childhood Development. I am Joshua Tagore
from the University High School of Science and Engineering, in Hartford, Connecticut. First and foremost, it is an honor to meet you all, and to represent the University High School of Science and Engineering. I am proud to be part of the effort to
help make our country more competitive in the fields of science and mathematics.
I am here to testify on S. 2198the Protecting Americas Competitive Edge (PACE)
Act.
Let me begin with a bit of personal background. I attended parochial schools and
mainstream public schools through the 6th grade. At the end of the 6th grade, my
parents and I made the difficult decision to leave the Avon Public Schoolsone of
the finest school systems in Connecticut. I enrolled at the Hartford Magnet Middle
School to take advantage of the benefits of the magnet schools unique approach to
education. I spent 7th and 8th grade under the guidance of principal, Delores
Bolton, and a strong and dedicated staff of teachers of the very highest caliber. During my time at the Hartford Magnet Middle School, I gained a stronger love for
mathematics and sciencetwo of the schools areas of specialty. While in middle
school, I participated in two statewide science fairs and the citywide science fair.
My participation in the city and the State science fairs helped to fuel my love for
math and science. I was also afforded the opportunity to participate in the Connecticut Pre-Engineering summer Program (CPEP). Upon leaving middle school, my parents wanted me to attend a school that could accommodate my growing interest in
math and science. My pursuit for knowledge in the fields of science and mathematics was met when I enrolled at the University High School of Science and Engineering.

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I am currently a sophomore at University High School, a high school affiliated
with the University of Hartford. My experience at the High School for Science and
Engineering has afforded me extensive exposure in the fields of science, math and
engineering. Since being accepted to the school almost 2 years ago, I have gained
an extraordinary amount of knowledge, and can say that I have participated in
classes that the typical high school sophomore does not get the opportunity to experience. Some of the opportunities that were made available to me include: course
work in Physics and Engineering as a freshman; and Advanced Placement Biology
as a sophomorewhich is a course designated for juniors and seniors in high school.
The class schedule is designed to be similar to that of a college student. We take
all honors courses, and are offered four possible math based courses as freshmen
(Algebra or Geometry, Algebra 2, Integrated Math, as well as physics and engineering).
Another benefit of being enrolled as a student in this extraordinary learning environment is being surrounded by teachers who have a tremendous amount of insight,
experience, and knowledge about what they teach. Students are challenged to think
analytically and pursue learning vigorously. To quote one of my fellow students,
The University High School is a place where all students feel free to be smart and
share with others their passion for math and science.
My journey over the last 2 years has allowed me to travel an incredible road that
has offered me greater knowledge and experience. The most recent benefit of my
magnet school experience was an independent study summer internship at Trinity
Collegea non-curriculum experience facilitated by my Principal, Dr. Betty Colli.
This incredible experience was birthed in a most unusual manner. Almost every
week, students are exposed to career professionals in the areas of science, mathematics, technology and engineering. It was through one of these weekly presentations last school year, that I learned of a summer research program, on the campus of Connecticuts Trinity College, which was open to high school students. After
expressing a strong interest in participating in this program, my principal, Dr.
Betty Colli made arrangements for me to be interviewed by the program coordinator, and then finalized the arrangements for me to participate in the internship.
This gave me the opportunity to work in a college styled laboratory as an intern,
among college students who were in their Junior and Senior years.
In the summer of 2005, my fellow researchers and I studied an area of the brain
called the hippocampusthe area which is responsible for learning and memory. I
walked into this program having very little knowledge of how the brain worked. As
a result of participating in this internship, I gained an extensive amount of knowledge on how the brain functions. I learned how the brain sends signals, how those
signals are received, and how the signal makes a person perform an activity. I
learned that the brain is composed of cells called neuronsthat neurons consist of
structures such as a nucleusthe control center or brain of the cell, an axonwhich
sends information to other neurons, and a dendrite, which receives information from
surrounding neurons. I learned that all neurons are not the samethat on the
brainthere are different groups of neurons, each specializing in a different task,
such as processing language or helping to coordinate movement. I learned that neurons communicate by a process called synapses, where there is space between the
cells to communicate. I learned that in synapses, there are four phases, Pre-Synapses, Synapses, Post Synapses, and Post-Post Synapses. I learned that in pre-synapses, the message, sent in the form of what is called a neurotransmitter, travels
down the axon. I learned that in synapses, the neurotransmitters are sent into the
fluid between the two neurons, known as the synaptic space. I learned that in post
synapses, the neurotransmitters are sent to a specific area on the receiving neuron,
releasing the message in the form of sodium and potassium. I learned that in PostPost Synapses, the neurotransmitters are either destroyed by cleanup cells known
as glial cells, as well as enzymes, or they are recycled by the axon. This is just a
small sampling of some of the knowledge that I acquired during my summer internship experience. If your head is giddy from all that detail, my head is giddy at the
thought of learning more of it.
In addition to gaining extensive knowledge about the brain, I became very familiar with the research environment on a college campus, thanks to the tremendous
influence of my research colleagues and our professor. From these individuals, I
learned that before you enter college, you must establish a good work ethic. I
learned that such a work ethic entails acquiring effective time management skills,
showing up for whatever you are doing on time or even earlier, and that you must
prove to be dependable in a fashion that benefits all of your fellow colleagues. The
college students and the professor that I worked with always took time out to help
me whenever I had a question about the brain, or our research, no matter how busy
they were. In fact, they always encouraged me to come to them with questions.

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56
This summer experience made a tremendous impact upon my life. Not only did
I learn about the brain and the proper work ethic, but I also gained first hand experience on what could possibly become my future career interest. As a direct consequence of my magnet school experience, I am currently considering career interests in the fields of Bio-Medical Engineering, Neurosurgery or Cardiology. I have always had a strong interest in studies of the human body, and after taking part in
this internship, my appetite for a career in a medical field has increased significantly. Having been shaped by my summer experience, I am interested in pursuing
this course of study when I get to college.
I strongly believe that if there are more schools like the University High School
of Science and Engineering, our country will see an increase in the number of students who will go on to pursue careers in science and mathematics. One of the
things that I have learned since attending this school is how mathematics and all
three areas of SciencePhysics, Chemistry, and Biologyare related, and play an
important role in our everyday lives. Having this experience has been one of my motivations to working towards obtaining a career in the fields of science and Engineering. My increased exposure to mathematics and science has motivated me to
help make my community and my country a better place to live in for future generations. It is important to instill this within the minds of every student across the Nation. It is important that every boy and girl across the Nation know of the benefits
of math and science. The University High School has been aiding that cause since
it was established 2 years ago. Currently, of the 200 students, 64 percent of them
are boys, while 36 percent are girls.
Two hundred students at University High School in Hartford is a start, not a final
destination. I believe that if more high school students are exposed to this kind of
unique learning experience as a routine part of their high school careersas I was
in my freshman yearwe could help to shape a Nation of young adults who will
gain an interest in careers involving math and science. In this new millennium, the
future of our Country depends on it. Thanks for your attentionand again, it has
been my honor.

Senator ALEXANDER. Thank you, Joshua, and thank you, Chris,

for inviting Joshua, and I wish you the very best. None of us
doubts your success. The only competition I can think of will be everybody competing to attract you to their college.
Senator DODD. I am just glad he does not have an interest in political science, that is all I can say.
[Laughter.]
Senator ALEXANDER. We have four votes at noon, so I am going
to try to keep my questions brief, so Senators Dodd and Burr, if
they have questions, will have a chance to ask them, and we will
make as much as we can of the next 20 minutes.
Mr. Rudin, you mentioned you know 8,000 more students in Tennessee who could take the AP test. How do you know who they are?
Mr. RUDIN. We have tested 10th and 11th graders in Tennessee
with the PSAT, the Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test, that
about 3 million kids take across the country.
Senator ALEXANDER. Is that in the 8th grade or in the 10th
grade?
Mr. RUDIN. In the 10th and 11th grade.
Senator ALEXANDER. They take the PSAT.
Mr. RUDIN. Take the PSAT. We have done a correlation study
that shows, depending on your performance on the PSAT in math
how likely you are to score a 3, 4 or 5 on the AP exam.
Senator ALEXANDER. Tennessee would be usually about 2 percent
of the country, so it might be 60,000 Tennessee
Mr. RUDIN. Roughly that many, right.
Senator ALEXANDER. And 8 of the 60,000, you would predict
would score a 3?
Mr. RUDIN. With a strong likelihood of success, 3, 4 or 5 on the
AP calculus test. Only 1,100 kids passed the AP calculus test last

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57
year, but we project that an additional 8,000 could pass the AP calculus course and exam if they simply were offered it or took it. The
problem is it is either not offered in their high school, or more likely, it may be offered but the students are not encouraged to take
it, and, frankly, some may be discouraged from taking it.
Senator ALEXANDER. Mr. ODonnell, last week I was with a professor from the University of Texas, Uri Treisman, who gave a
paper. He is at Austin. He pointed out something I just did not
know, and Senators Dodd and Burr I think will be interested in
this. He pointed out that 13 Statesthe point of this comment is
that our students can do well, that 13 States, in 1999, treated
themselves as a country, and submitted themselves for the 8th
grade Third International Math and Science Study, which is the
best, most respected math and science international comparison I
know about, and that Texas, whose sample contained more than 50
percent African-American and Hispanic students, performed at the
significantly higher level than most European countries. Texas 8th
graders in math and science in 1999 performed at a significantly
higher level than most European countries.
You have been at this for a while. We just heard that at the
present level of instruction there are 60,000 students in Tennessee,
who take the PSAT, and 8,000 of those 60,000 could make an AP
score of 3, 4 or 5. What are the chances of increasing the percentage of students who can succeed on an AP test to the level of 3,
4 or 5?
Mr. ODONNELL. Our view is the teacher. The student, of course,
has to go to a school that offers the exams, the courses, but the key
is the teacher. A poor teacher cannot get those kids to pass AP,
which is a college-level course, and an excellent teacher almost demands that they do.
We have a science and engineering magnet in the Dallas School
System that produced, for 3 years in a row, more African-American
and Hispanic passing grades in the calculus AP and BC than any
other school in America. So they can learn, but it has to do with
an outstanding teacher. That is what we look for. We try to motivate, and we try to give them the incentives and recognition that
they deserve.
Senator ALEXANDER. Joshua, have you taken any AP exams yet?
Mr. TAGORE. No, but I think that my first AP exam is scheduled
in May.
Senator ALEXANDER. Are they typically given to sophomores and
freshmen? Do many sophomores and freshmen take the AP exams?
Mr. RUDIN. Most are given to juniors and seniors, but when you
have an exceptional sophomore, they will take them as well.
Senator ALEXANDER. Joshua, what is your guessyou have obviously gotten yourself very well qualified in math and science. How
many of your fellow students could do that if they tried?
Mr. TAGORE. I think all of them, all of them, because it is a matter of putting your mind to it.
Senator ALEXANDER. And, Mr. ODonnell said he thought the
teacher was the critical component in that. What is your opinion?
Mr. TAGORE. I think to some extent it is part of the teachers role
to encourage the students and to motivate them to be successful,

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58
and then it is the students part to feel that they can be successful
and do what is right.
Senator ALEXANDER. Mr. Bement, as you look at the recommendations of the PACE Commission, do you see proposals that
the National Science Foundation already is doing, and that ought
to be modified or expanded, rather than adopt the proposals of the
PACE Commission?
Mr. BEMENT. Yes, Senator. There are two programs that are in
the PACE bill that closely parallel what we are currently doing.
One is in Section 132, Recruiting and Training New Mathematics
and Science Teachers, that closely follows our Noyce scholarship
program, where we encourage undergraduate students in science
and engineering to go on for a degree in education. We provide
scholarships for that. In terms of years of service required after the
degree is granted, they are very similar. I will not go into the details. We can provide that for the record.
The second program is section 191, the National Science Foundation Early Career Research Grants. We currently have an early career program. We call it career, but it focuses both on research and
education because research and education are two sides of the
same coin, as far as the Foundation is concerned. Again, there are
some differences in qualifications, and on the use of the funds, but
fundamentally, section 191 proposes no less than 65 grants. We already satisfy that. We are providing 375 career grants annually.
The amount of funding is very similar. Section 191 proposes the
grants be 5 years of duration and $100,000 a year, and that closely
parallels what we are currently providing. As a matter of fact, a
third of our awards actually exceed that minimum.
Senator ALEXANDER. Thank you. I am going the ask our subcommittee staff to work with you and make sure that our proposals
are the most practical proposals. In other words, if what we should
be doing is amending and enlarging existing programs rather than
starting a new program, we ought to consider that.
Senator Dodd.
Senator DODD. Thanks very much, Mr. Chairman.
Let me go back to the first question the chairman asks. Actually,
we were chatting here during your testimony. I am wondering if we
cannot do a better job of identifying the Joshuas before junior and
senior year. I am worried that we are letting kids slip. I mean we
are not picking up earlier in the educational process the students
who are capable of doing what Joshua is doing. I am going to ask
you, even though, what you do is dealing more at the high school
level. It worries me that we go K8 and I am told over and over
again that by the time a child is in the 3rd grade, that if they are
slipping behind in reading and so forth, they are more likely to
drop out. And yet, we know that many of these young people have
more than the capabilities to perform, and yet we do not really determine who is capable until they get to that junior year in high
school or senior year in high school.
It seems to me there just have to be thousands of kids out there,
not millions of them, that could be performing at an AP level, and
by the time we test them it is just too late, they have slipped out
of the system, maybe they are dropping out or going to drop out,
and they become kids we have to worry about because they are

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going to live in a global economy where the skill level they have
is just going to not give them much more of an opportunity than
performing very menial tasks and jobs.
Maybe this is a question too for you, Mr. Johnson, at the Department of Education. I am looking at the budget numbers. If you
have not heard from others on this committee, I presume you will
at some point or another. We are talking all about this commitment to education, and I have to tell youyou are the one sitting
here it is terribly disappointing to see the numbers in this budget.
Hopefully, this committee and others will do a better job at getting
some of these resource levels back up. But you heard Governor
Hunt, you heard everybody else, this cannot be done on the cheap.
What we are talking about here in this program, the PACE bill, is
going to cost a lot. Yet I am dismayed when I look at what has
happened to title I, what has happened to special education.
Here we are, it is the 21st century, and I do not know of anybody
that pays any attention to this subject matter who believes that if
this Nation ever portends it is going to be successful in this century
and commit itself at the levels we are talking about here, education, we are just not going to make it. The Joshuas will, a couple
of more will here, but the bulk of students sitting out there are not
going to get that help if we do not do a better job at this thing.
So tell me why we are not doing a better job, and how can we do
a better job of identifying children earlier in this process than waiting until their sophomore or junior year to discover that they might
be an AP student. How do we do that? Why can we not do that?
Anyway, the question is open. Go ahead, Peter.
Mr. JOHNSON. Let me comment on that. You raised a couple of
issues, the first dealing with why we are not doing a better job
with students at the elementary level. This may sound counter-intuitive, but I think Josh put his finger right on it. The research
suggests that even students who have not been terribly successful,
when exposed to a rigorous curriculum experience, learn more, fail
less. One thing that we have to doand no child is clearly directed
toward thatis to make sure that every single student has a rigorous curriculum experience throughout school, taught by the excellent teachers.
Senator DODD. You undercut No Child Left Behind by $15.4 billion, the No Child Left Behind Act. I voted for it. I think it was
a good idea, but how can you possibly talk about it and then not
fund the program?
Mr. JOHNSON. Well, we are doing several things. The actual expenditure on education over the past 5 years has increased, and
the President and the Secretary have proposed a budget that actually targets what we think is the next stage of school improvement.
The first round of money went to help States build assessment systems. I was State chief in Mississippi. Mississippi already had an
assessment system grades 2 through 8 in reading and mathematics, and high school end-of-course tests. We took No Child dollars and built and offered to the schools of the State a diagnostic
assessment program on demand. The teacher could call up an assessment for the class and get an analysis of strengths and weaknesses of that class, or an individual child, and suggestions as to

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what to do to teach to the strengths and remediate the weaknesses.
No Child was a big help to us in Mississippi.
That also leads to one other thing I want to say. Accompanying
a more rigorous curriculum experience has got to be a comprehensive assessment program, both formative and substantive. We have
got to have information that helps kids.
Senator DODD. I hear you, but you know what I am saying to you
too.
Mr. JOHNSON. Yes, I understand.
Senator DODD. We have 30 some odd percent of teachers in a lot
of our elementary schools who are not certified to teach what they
are teaching in urban schools, not true necessarily in suburban
schools. We are cutting back program after program because the
State and local budgets are strapped trying to meet needs. We are
talking about math and science here today, but we also understand
the importance of other things that would be part of a curriculum
of a child growing up things like music that can make a huge difference in mathematical development, by the way. We are falling
behind in our national commitments, in my view, in this area, and
I am just worried that we are missing the kids.
We are missing 8,000 in Tennessee alone that could have been
AP students. You start multiplying that fact around the country,
it seems to me we have a lot of work to do to close that gap.
Mr. JOHNSON. Correct.
Senator DODD. Peter, you wanted to make a comment.
Mr. ODONNELL. I do. Laying the foundation program that we
have developed starts in the 6th grade, and it will have the same
diagnostic test and end-of-course assessment so that you will know
how each of those students are doing, and you are moving them
along a path toward AP.
Senator DODD. You are picking up a lot earlier in the process.
Mr. ODONNELL. We are picking them up at 6th grade, not waiting until it is too late.
Senator DODD. Who else is doing this? Do you know of other
States around the country that are doing anything like that besides
you?
Mr. ODONNELL. I do not know. We have the only one that I
know of.
Senator DODD. Mr. Bement, do you want to comment on this?
Mr. BEMENT. I think one of the critical factors has to be setting
expectations, and it has to be expectations set not by the teacher,
not by the school, but by the community. You have to get the community engaged, and that is where the business sector does come
in, because our experience indicates that when you get the business
sector involved, when you get the professional societies involved,
and they all aim at the same expectation, things really do improve.
Senator DODD. Let me ask you a quick question. We listened to
Jim Hunt recommend that maybe the National Academy of Science
ought to set some American standards and then incentivize our
States in the math and science area. As part of the National
Science Foundation, how do you feel about that and would the National Science Foundation be inclined to want to participate in
something like that?

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Mr. BEMENT. Let me say, Senator that over the years, both the
National Science Foundation and the Department of Education together have sponsored most of the studies that have been conducted by the National Academies, and we clearly would want
more of these types of studies to be conducted.
Senator DODD. Do you like the idea of having some American
standards in math and science, or is that going too far in your
view?
Mr. BEMENT. No, I do not believe it is going too far.
Senator DODD. Joshua, last with you, you answered the question,
you said almost every other student. You are talking about the students in your present magnet school, the University of Hartford
High School. What about students that you have known when you
were in other schools and so forth? What is your impression about
the number of other classmates you have had that may not be in
the program you are in or would not get into it today, but could
have if earlier identification of their abilities had been identified
and someone had worked with them?
Mr. TAGORE. I think that a lot of students can do anything that
they put their minds to, and I think that a lot of talent is wasted
sometimes, but I think that if you encourage a student, then you
can bring out the best in them.
Senator DODD. You said something to me when we were in Hartford the other day that I have not forgotten. You said to me one
of the reasons you like being where you are in school today is because it is okay where you are to be smart. Remember saying that
to me?
Mr. TAGORE. Yes.
Senator DODD. Tell me about what that means. Was it not okay
to be smart in some of these other schools you were in?
Mr. TAGORE. Sometimes, yes. Sometimes you are
Senator DODD. Why does that happen? What happens?
Mr. TAGORE. You are looked down upon as strange in some sense
because you like tobecause your passion is in the work, and you
want to get insight from the teachers. I guess in other schools it
is not accepted that much. But when you go to a school such as
University High School, there are teachers with so much insight
that you have to tap into, and it just helps you become a better student.
Senator DODD. And it is okay to be smart.
Mr. TAGORE. It is.
Senator DODD. I should have said at the outset, by the way, with
my colleague from New Mexico and Pete Domenici, I thank you,
Jeff. If it had not been for this Senator and Senator Alexander, we
would not have had the study done and so forth, so we are talking
about a subject matter today because two United States Senators
decided to make a difference, and a guy from Tennessee decided it
was worth putting in bill form, so, Jeff, I thank you very, very
much.
Thanks, Mr. Chairman.
Senator ALEXANDER. Thank you.
Senator Burr.
Senator BURR. Mr. Chairman, I will be quick.
Secretary, it is great to have you here.

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Mr. JOHNSON. Thank you.
Senator BURR. Its always good to have somebody from North
Carolina on every panel.
[Laughter.]
I thank you for letting us put the Governor in front for a second,
but you and I are used to having that happen.
Mr. JOHNSON. Absolutely.
[Laughter.]
Senator BURR. Mr. ODonnell, thank you for your work.
Joshua, your insight has been incredibly helpful, and your understanding of how a brain works, I would love to spend some time
with you because I am still trying to figure out some of the people
I serve with up here, and how their brain works.
[Laughter.]
Senator DODD. You are making an assumption they have one.
[Laughter.]
Senator BURR. Just one question. I have heard every questioner
ask the same question, and I have heard most of you respond, so
I will throw it out there for anybody who would like to tackle it.
In Tennessee, 8,000 opportunities missed. But to legitimately say
we missed it, we have to believe that there were a sufficient number of teachers with degrees to teach AP classes to 8,000 students
in Tennessee alone. I do not believe that is the case, and if there
were, there would not be any AP teachers left in the 49 other
States, so it would be a study of what we had missed somewhere
else. I think we are in agreement on that.
My question is can we use distance education to teach AP, and
can we, at least in the short term, leverage the limited pool that
we have of people who have that expertise to expand the opportunity, maybe not in the most preferred way, but certainly in a
temporary way while we get there?
I will let all of you answer, but I want to make this comment.
We here, and I think those of us in education, do not put enough
credibility behind technology because we grew up at a different
time. He does things with technology that we never dreamed about,
we will never understand, and therefore, we assume that if designed, those on the other end will not utilize it to its capabilities,
and I would tell you that it gets back to that expectation thing that
I talked to Jim Hunt about. And he just confirmed it. Give them
an opportunity. We cannot make them absorb it, but not providing
them the opportunity is the only mistake we can make.
Mr. RUDIN. Senator, I think you have hit the nail right on the
head. It is the teacher that is the issue, and getting a high-quality
teacher trained. Let me just clarify one thing. When I talk about
8,000 students who can succeed, that is just AP calculus. In Tennessee alone you have another 4,000 students who could have
passed AP physics, 10,000 in AP chemistry, 11,000 AP history. I
can go through the whole thing. There are millions of students in
this country who can succeed in AP courses if they are given the
chance, if the course is offered, and if we can get a quality teacher
in the classroom to teach it. So you are exactly right.
In terms of distance learning, we at the College Board, we are
not in the business of actually running courses. We sponsor the AP
program, but we know there are private companies, we know there

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are colleges and universities who are offering AP courses online
with some degree of success, and we encourage that.
One thing we do is we have an electronic professional development program for AP teachers, and about 300,000 teacherswhich
means a lot more than just AP teachersare involved in this electronic discussion group so that they can exchange lesson plans,
share ideas, exchange labs, and offer professional development online. I think you are exactly right, if we are really serious about
ramping up AP access, and IB and other rigorous courses, we have
to use technology much more effectively.
Mr. ODONNELL. On the number of teachers, part of the National
Academy report involvespart of that report, we are going to ramp
up. We are not going to get all those AP teachers or pre-AP teachers in a year. It calls for a 4- to 5-year period to train the teachers
that we will need in those disciplines.
The second thing is, our experience, and the person that runs our
foundation in Texas, Greg Fleischerhe is hereused to use a distance learning, but it was really as a supplement. It was once a
week, and they would go into those schools, and the teacher would
have their students, and they would address aspects of problems
they were dealing with in the course that week. So it was effective,
but nothing will take the place of a good live-wire teacher, well prepared, in the classroom, but as a supplement, yes, and as best practices among teachers, yes. But I think it will not anytime soon take
the place of a well-prepared teacher in a subject.
Senator ALEXANDER. Senator, we are about to vote, and I want
to make sure Senator Bingaman has a chance.
Senator DODD. Mr. Chairman, the Secretary wants to respond.
Senator ALEXANDER. Excuse me.
Mr. JOHNSON. Just briefly, in the Competitiveness initiative
there is a proposal to train AP and IB teachers and expand it, so
it gets at that same issue.
Mr. BEMENT. May I make a brief comment?
Senator ALEXANDER. Dr. Bement.
Mr. BEMENT. Some of the results of our research indicates that
AP programs are exceptionally important, but even in the earlier
grades, it is turning out that students who excel in mathematics,
also excel in science, also excel in reading, so there is an interrelationship or there is a coupling in the learning process.
Senator DODD. Music too.
Mr. BEMENT. That is broadly beneficial. Music as well. I am a
music buff, so I agree with you.
Senator ALEXANDER. Senator Bingaman has really been the leader, along with Senator Hutchison, on advanced placement legislation. We will let him have the last word.
Senator BINGAMAN. Thank you very much. Let me thank all of
you, and particularly commend Peter ODonnell for his leadership
on this, and I have admired his initiative in Texas for many years.
As he knows, he briefed a group of us from New Mexico about what
they are doing, and I very much appreciated that. I commend him.
He is a good share of the reason why this is part of the Presidents
initiative here, and we want to see it happen.
Let me just ask Secretary Johnson, I asked our Secretary of Education Spellings the other dayI stated my concern about how

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there seemed to be a proposal by the administration to train 70,000
AP teachers, but I did not see any commitment to train pre-AP
teachers such as the effort that is being made there in Texas with
laying the foundation. She said, No, no, that is part of it. We are
going to train pre-AP teachers, as well as AP teachers. Do you
know, is there anything concrete that the Department has done to
sort of indicate how this would go about? I am just unclear as to
what concrete steps the Department would anticipate taking to
gear up the training of pre-AP teachers.
Mr. JOHNSON. We are in the process of putting all that together,
but one of the things that clearly has to happen is the State level
capacity for improving schools, if the dollars for that come through,
that has a strong staff development component. The High School
Initiative that is part of the Presidents proposal will give formula
money to States, and they in turn could do competitive grants with
local school systems, all targeted toward improving the high school
experience and the middle school experience for after that. Then we
have the Math Now for both middle school and elementary, both
of which have professional development components.
Senator BINGAMAN. I guess what I am not clear on, also is it the
plan of the administration to contract with nonprofits or with the
College Board or with someone to do this training, or do you intend
that the States gear up to do it? How does this happen?
Mr. JOHNSON. well, certainly working with the College Board,
but other entities to also do the professional development for teachers, but certainly working with college boards is one of the things
we do.
Senator BINGAMAN. As quick as you are able to sort of flush out
how this would happen, I would sure be anxious to get some of the
detail of it, because I would like to know the impact in my State
and other States, and what kind of an opportunity this will result
in for people. I think that is important.
One other issue Senator Burr asked. How do you get the maximum benefit from the pool of qualified teachers we now have? I remember in the briefing, Mr. ODonnell, that you gave us there in
your offices, you had circuit riders for some of the small school districts. That would be a tremendous help in my State. Could you describe that very briefly?
Mr. ODONNELL. Yes. We have pilot programs with our small
school districts. They cannot afford to hire or get the talent for an
AP teacher, so we came up with a plan to have an AP calculus
teacher and an AP English teacher, and we call them circuit riders
because they will do four schools. They will go to each of those
schools and teach the AP class. Now we are going to push that
down to the pre-AP, but the circuit rider thing has been well received.
Senator BINGAMAN. It seems to me, Mr. Chairman, that is something which unfortunately, the walls that are built up around each
school board and each school district sort of get in the way of that.
But in my State, we have a lot of rural school districts, and if we
could figure out a way to fund the salary of these circuit riders
Mr. ODONNELL. Well, the four districts were splitting the cost,
and it makes it affordable.

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Senator BINGAMAN. That is part of the solution to getting some
of these courses taught even before we get the full complement of
teachers that we need to do it.
Let me ask Dr. Bement, I am concerned that the budget proposes
pretty drastic cuts in some of your programs, particularly this MSP
program, Math and Science Partnership Program. You have one.
The Department of Education has a Math and Science Partnership
Program in addition. But yours has been going down in budget
very substantially, and according to what I have here, it went from
104 million in 2004 to what is proposed for next year is 46 million.
That does not look to me like a ringing endorsement by the rest
of the administration of what you folks are doing. How do you explain this? Is this something you are trying to get out of this business?
Mr. BEMENT. No. The role of the Science Foundation is to really
do the research and to evaluate the research through intervention,
to understand what works. We work closely with the Department
of Education in trying to make what works work more broadly
through implementation. So there is the research and discovery
role, there is also the implementation role. In order to get more impact across this whole area of education, we have to work together.
We have to establish a partnership.
The funding in the Math and Science Partnership within the
foundation still carries resources that will allow us to continue to
collect data, to evaluate the data, to synthesize it and also to disseminate it, and to share it with the Department of Education.
That cooperation transcends what goes on in Washington, because
over two-thirds of our grantees in Math and Science Partnership
are also partnering with the coordinators of Math and Science
Partnership at the States, supported by the Department of Education.
What we are really trying to do is to get more dissemination. We
are trying to build a brush fire. We are trying to broaden the lessons that we have learned, and the best practices that we have
learned through the research and the interventions that we have
carried on over the last 4 years, since 2002.
Senator BINGAMAN. Mr. Chairman, let me just indicate to you
and Senator Dodd that I hope when the budget process begins
around here, we can go ahead and add some money. I hate to see
the National Science Foundation funding for education initiatives
cut in the way it is proposed to be cut in this budget, so I hope
we can correct that.
Thank you again for having this hearing, and thank you all for
being here.
Senator ALEXANDER. Let me thank the witnesses and the staff
and the large number of Senators who came by today. We have
completed 2 days of hearings now on eight provisions from the National Academy of Sciences recommendations for how we keep our
advantage in science and technology. We heard good suggestions.
We have gained some understanding. We have talked to Dr.
Bement to make sure that we do not duplicate programs, and
wherever we can, we strengthen and broaden programs. We have
heard from Governor Hunt that he enthusiastically supports all of
the provisions of the act. And, Joshua, we especially appreciate

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your coming down, and we ought to have a hearing once a year just
to watch your progress. I think we would all enjoy that.
Senator DODD. Here is his dad right over here.
Senator ALEXANDER. I am sure his father has had a lot to do
with his success thus far.
Where we hope to go now is to make our recommendations from
this subcommittee to the full HELP Committee. Senator Dodd and
I will work together on doing that. Then we hope that our full committee will look not only at these provisions from the last 2 days,
but the other provisions from the PACE Act that have been referred to this committee, get them to the floor.
I know the Energy Committee is planning to do that with eight
provisions that were referred to it. Then whatever we do in our full
committee will go to the Commerce Committee for 30 days. The Finance Committee has three provisions from the PACE report, and
we are counting on the leadership, when all this is spread out, to
pull it back together and give us a chance to approach this as we
started, which was the question: how does our country maintain its
advantage in science and technology over the next 10 years so we
can keep our jobs from going overseas, so we can have the brain
power we need to win the war on terror, and to have energy independence and all the other things we hope to do as a country.
Each of you have made a tremendous contribution to that. If you
have other comments you would like to make, we would like to
have them within the next week so we can include them in our
work.
Thank you, Senator Dodd. Do you have any further comments?
Senator DODD. No, just to thank you and to thank our panelists
as well. This is one of the reasons I like serving with Lamar Alexander, is he likes big ideas, and too often we spend too much time
on marginal issue. This is the heart of it. Again, I point to that language in the summary, the abruptness of change that can occur if
we allow this to slip. We may not get it back. The world is such
today that with the click of a mouse, you can be in touch with anybody anywhere in the world to provide whatever data or information we need. And we had better be a part of that. We want when
those mouses get clicked around the world, we want to be tying
into a Web site that is located in the United States with people like
Josh and others who are answering the questions and doing the
work.
That is not going to happen. It does not happen miraculously. It
never has. It was a Congress in 1860, during the Civil War, that
passed legislation that created the Morrill Act, the land grant colleges. It was a Congress before the end of World War II that established the GI Bill. It was a Congress before they did anything else
in 1789, it was the Northwest Ordinance, which set aside public
lands for education. There has been a 218 year commitment in this
country to the excellence of education. Thomas Jefferson said it
better than anybody I have ever heard, at the beginning of the
19th century, any Nation that ever expects to be ignorant and free,
expects what never was and never possibly can be. And if that was
true in 1804, believe me, it is true in 2006.
So this is an issue we cannot waste any time on, and I am
thrilled to be a part of this effort with Lamar Alexander, and Jeff

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Bingaman, and Pete Domenici, and many others who care about it,
and your participation has helped us today.
Senator ALEXANDER. Thank you. The hearing is adjourned.
[Additional material follows.]

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ADDITIONAL MATERIAL
RESPONSE

TO

QUESTIONS

OF

SENATOR ENZI

BY

PETER ODONNELL, JR.

Question 1. What role does philanthropy play in strengthening math and science
education throughout the K12 system? How can States and districts take advantage of the resources available to them through philanthropic organizations?
Answer 1. Philanthropy can support significant improvements in teaching and
learning. Many donors want to improve public education. Businesses know that the
strength of their future workforce depends on the quality of public schools. But they
do not know where to place their bets in public education.
The education enterprise must become more accountable to receive more private
support. Donors respond to data. They will support K12 programs that have a
proven track record. The academic outcomes must be measurable and documented;
and the programs must be pegged to high standards and expectations.
An example of how philanthropy works to improve math and science in public
schools is Advanced Placement Strategies, Inc. (APS), a nonprofit organization that
operates in Texas. It is run by master teachers and supported by private funds. APS
was established in 2000 to train the teachers and manage the Advanced Placement
Incentive Program in 10 high schools in Dallas. At that time, it had only two donorsa private foundation to underwrite its operating budget and the Texas Instruments Foundation to underwrite AP incentive programs in the schools. Today, APS
has 52 private partners who support AP and pre-AP programs in 69 school districts
in Texas. These districts enroll 42 percent of total public school enrollment in Texas.
APS is currently training 800 AP teachers of math, science and English and 7000
pre-AP teachers in grades 611 in math, science and English.
APS operates by 3-way contracts between the donor, the school district and APS.
This not only shares the financial burden, it also lets the school know that the local
community supports its AP program. The contract requires the district to report
data to APS which analyzes it and reports results to the donors on a regular basis.
Donors are asked to make 5 year commitments so the program will take hold in
a school and grow. Incentives are funded by the private sector. Business knows well
the value of incentives to reward performance and responds to incentive programs
to reward academic performance. Paying incentives with private funds also has
avoided any problems with teachers unions in Texas.
As schools evaluate the success of their incentive programs, more school funds are
being allocated to support AP teachers, as well as to pay the full cost of training
pre-AP teachers and purchasing the materials and laboratory supplies they need.
The Texas experience demonstrates that a nonprofit organization, governed by a
small board of philanthropic citizens and managed by outstanding, very experienced
teachers, can bring together schools and private donors in pursuit of common goals.
It is an implementation vehicle that will put philanthropic resources to work to improve academic performance in our schools. It allows a State to scale up quickly,
while maintaining quality.
Question 2. How does increasing the number of advanced placement courses in a
school impact the achievement of all students within that school?
Answer 2. In most schools, AP teachers teach AP students half the time and regular classes the rest of the time. Principals tell us that AP changes the academic climate of the entire school. AP teachers bring a culture of high standards and high
expectations to their schools that positively influences other teachers so that all students begin to benefit from better teaching of content and higher expectations.
The impact is even greater in schools that offer pre-AP courses beginning in the
6th grade. Getting students into the AP pipeline early gives them confidence that
they can master advanced math and science courses in high school and puts a focus
on the important goal of graduating both from high school and from college.
An investment today to train one AP teacher or one pre-AP teacher, when coupled
with incentives based on academic performance, keeps on providing returns for that
school and its students for many years to come.
Question 3. Finding highly qualified science and math teachers is often a problem
for urban and rural schools. What can be done to retain teachers trained in the advanced placement program in difficult to staff schools?
Answer 3. The short-term solution to recruiting and retaining teachers in difficultto-staff schools is financial incentivesincentives to attend quality training institutes, incentives for extra work outside regular school hours (tutoring and prep sessions), and incentives based on their students performance on AP exams.

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AP teachers tend to have high job satisfaction. Even though teaching AP requires
hard work and long hours, teachers in low-performing schools feel rewarded by seeing their students learn advanced material and go on to win scholarships and acceptance to universities.
The Dallas AP incentive program offer examples of the long-term benefits of incentives to retain good teachers in inner city schools. Dallas is the 12th largest
urban district in the country. It has 93 percent minority enrollment and 82 percent
of its students are economically disadvantaged. Many of its 28 high schools are considered to be low-performing. However, teachers who were eligible to retire have
not retired because their AP incentive payments, which are added to their regular
salary, also serve to increase their retirement benefits. Even more important, several Dallas AP incentive schools are beginning to hire their former students as AP
teachers. These newly-degreed teachers are eager to return to their old high school
to teach, knowing they will be enthusiastically supported by their former AP teachers. When I testified before the Subcommittee on Education on March 1st, I distributed a series of charts showing results of the AP incentive program in Dallas. I have
attached a copy for your information.
Our countrys long-term solution is contained in the first recommendation of the
National Academy Gathering Storm report, namely to vastly improve the teacher
corps by attracting at least 10,000 of our best college graduates to the teaching profession each year. The foundation for a scientifically literate workforce begins with
developing outstanding K12 teachers in science and mathematics in numbers sufficient to serve all our schools.
RESPONSE

TO

QUESTIONS

OF

SENATOR JEFFORDS

BY

PETER ODONNELL, JR.

Question 1. Both national and international tests continually show that U.S. students do well through the 4th grade and then a decline begins. The decline becomes
worse between grades 8 through 12. What are your recommendations as to how we
can specifically improve grades 5 through 8 in regard to math and science instruction?
Answer 1. The reason for the decline is that after the 4th grade in the United
States the number of new science and math concepts introduced is very low. Students in middle school continue to add, subtract, multiply, divide and tackle word
problems. Concepts of algebra, geometry and functions are ignored until the students reach 8th and 9th grades. It is not that algebra is so difficult, but without
early preparation students can be overwhelmed by large numbers of new concepts
being introduced. We know that elementary students can handle linear equations,
basic geometric concepts and chemical reactions. But teachers are not prepared to
teach the content. Textbooks spend too much time on repetitive drill. And expectations for our middle school students are disturbingly low.
The solution is pre-AP classes in grades 611 with an integrated curriculum
taught by highly trained teachers. Better training of teachers already in the classroom is essential. In Texas, master AP and pre-AP teachers developed a program
called, Laying the Foundation. Since there are no pre-AP textbooks in math and
science, Laying the Foundation provides the curriculum, benchmarks, assessments
and training to teach the content and analytical skills to begin preparing students
in the 6th grade to master advanced courses in the 11th and 12th grades. Each lesson is aligned to the National Science standards and to AP topics in science and
math. When fully deployed in the countrys middle and high schools, pre-AP will
provide an enormous boost for all students by giving them an early start on learning
essential math and science concepts at increasingly difficult levels as they progress
through each grade.
Question 2. The New England Association of Schools and Colleges has found that
one of the primary reasons this Nations students appear to do poorly after 4th
grade in math and science on international tests is that the United States sets up
math and science curriculum completely different than most other Nations. For example, in the United States calculus is usually taught in 12th grade and in other
countries, it is taught in earlier grades. Thus, the international tests could be comparing apples to oranges. What are your thoughts on this?
Answer 2. While I am not qualified to offer as expert an opinion on this matter
as would an organization such as ACHIEVE, we do know that the U.S. curriculum,
taught by well trained teachers, should introduce critical science and mathematics
concepts as early as possible. Perhaps another question is whether expectations of
parents and educators are driving earlier success in other countries.
At the Science and Engineering Magnet School in Dallas, 36 sophomore students,
including 20 minority students, took the AP calculus exam. This exam covers the

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first semester of freshman calculus in college. All 36 students passed and 50 percent
scored a 5, the highest possible grade on an AP exam. When outstanding teachers
have high expectations, students rise to the challenge, even as early as the 10th
grade.
I am aware of one research report which shows that Advanced Placement enables
U.S. students to successfully compete internationally in math and science. According
to a study at Boston College, AP calculus students scored higher than students in
every other country on the TIMSS math problems, compared to the U.S. as a whole
which was second from the bottom. Our students who passed an AP physics exam
scored above all but one country, whereas the U.S. scored at the very bottom.

I hope this information is helpful to you. Please let me know if you would like
clarification of any of my comments or have further questions.
RESPONSE

TO

QUESTIONS

OF

SENATORS ENZI

AND

JEFFORDS

BY

ARDEN BEMENT, JR.

PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT IN EDUCATION

Question 1. Parents play an important role in their childrens education. If they

dont see a crisis over science and math, it may be difficult to garner support for
improving science and math education throughout the country. Do you see a problem with parental engagement? How could the National Science Foundation address
the issue?
Answer 1. The importance of parents is reflected in nearly all NSF/EHR programs
focusing on formal K12 and informal science education. However, we are aware
that while parents can be powerful allies for science and mathematics programs in
schools, recent studies show that they are generally satisfied with the quality of
education received by their own children, thinking that well-documented national
problems must be elsewhere. In addition, parental involvement in schooling differs
significantly by demographic group.
A growing number of projects are shedding light on issues surrounding parental
involvement and developing strategies for engaging parents. Examples:
Learning to Work with the Public in the Context of Local Systemic Change (ESI
9980602). The project developed strategies for teaching parents how to recognize
quality mathematics programs; experience mathematics in meaningful ways; engage
in ongoing discussions in mathematics education; and better understand the urgent
need to implement high-quality mathematics programs.
Community Ambassadors in Science Exploration (CASE) (ESIO337266) encourages appreciation and understanding of science among underserved families. Research indicates that the family learning approach is uniquely capable of not only

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developing support for science learning in schools, but also in creating a context that
reinforces science learning in out-of-school settings.
In general, informal science education projects, including television shows such
as ZOOM and PEEP, IMAX films, and community science projects, are designed not
only to motivate and educate children about science and technology, but also to involve parents in shared education activities and to raise their awareness of the importance of science education.
All comprehensive, multi-year curricula as well as some of the instructional
modules developed with NSF support now require development of companion materials designed to help parents, among others, understand the philosophy and instructional strategies.
NSF will continue to pursue a multi-pronged strategy to engage parents through
its formal and informal education programming, including development and evaluation of effective strategies as well as research around factors critical to their success
in diverse settings. NSF intends to strengthen and expand its efforts to disseminate
these successful strategies to broad audiences.
NSF/DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION COORDINATION

Question 2. How is the NSF coordinating with the Department of Education to

align the goals of Math & Science Partnerships with the No Child Left Behind Act?
Answer 2. The Math and Science Partnership (MSP) program at NSF is a research and development effort that supports innovative partnerships between higher
educationespecially disciplinary faculty in mathematics. The sciences and engineeringand local school districts to improve K12 student achievement in mathematics and scienceMSP projects are expected to both raise the achievement levels
of all students and significantly reduce achievement gaps in the mathematics and
science performance of diverse student populations. Through these goals and such
other key features as teacher quality, the MSP program at NSF directly supports
the work of the Department of Education (ED) and the No Chid Let Behind Act
(NCLB).
Coordination with ED in aligning the goals of MSP with NCLB occurs at multiple
levels: at the agency level, at the program level, and at the project level. At
the agency level, Dr. Arden Bement (Director of NSF) works to coordinate with
ED and has met personally with ED Secretary Margaret Spellings to discuss NSF
and EDs shared sense of mission to identify and implement high quality programs
that will result in improvements in student performance. In addition, a cross-agency
Tiger Team meets for discussion of and coordination of our common efforts, including the MSP. The members of the Tiger Team include Dr. Donald Thompson (Acting Assistant Director, EHR, NSF) and Dr. Henry Johnson (Assistant Secretary for
Elementary and Secondary Education ED), as well as their peers from other Federal
Agencies with an interest in mathematics and science education. In addition to the
Tiger Team, the MSP program staffs at NSF and ED meet regularly to plan and
coordinate common MSP efforts across the two agencies.
Coordination with ED in aligning the goals of MSP with NCLB occurs at both
the project and program levels. As MSP work has progressed and deepened, coordination has grown at the project level between projects/partners funded by NSF
and those connected with the various State Departments of Education and with
State MSP efforts. State Departments of Education, for example, are partners in
many NSF-funded Partnerships:

NSF Grantee/Lead Organization

State Department of Education

University of North Carolina General Administration ........

University of Kentucky .......................................................
Duke University ..................................................................
The Vermont Institutes ......................................................
Hofstra University ..............................................................
University of Puerto Rico-Rio Piedras ...............................
University System of Georgia .............................................

North Carolina Department of Public Instruction

Kentucky Department of Education
North Carolina Department of Public Instruction
Vermont Department of Education
New York State Education Department
Puerto Rico Department of Education
Georgia Department of Education

Almost two-thirds of NSFs funded Partnerships report direct collaboration in the field with State MSPs. This collaboration takes many forms, from full
inclusion of new districts supported by ED/State MSP dollars into the work of an
existing NSF/MSP, to an NSF/MSP projects intellectual input that guides specific
aspects of the work of a State MSP site.

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At the program level, NSFs MSP-RETA (Research, Evaluation and Technical Assistance) component supports the development of tools and other deliverables that
inform and assist both NSFs and EDs Partnerships. These include, for example,
tools to assess teachers knowledge of mathematics content and how this content is
used in teaching mathematics, with particular focus on upper elementary and middle school algebra and geometry. Tools of this type have not previously existed and
are being used in both NSFs and EDs MSPs to inform and assess their work.
Other tools that address the needs of both NSFs and EDs MSP sites are being
developed in the NSF-funded Partnerships themselves, an example is the collaboration in the Appalachian Mathematics and Science Partnership with the Kentucky
Department of Education to develop an innovative system that helps school principals identify the instructional methods teachers use, spot instructional problems
and make decisions that inform teacher development, towards a goal of improved
student achievement.
The work of the MSP-funded projects at NSF is being widely disseminated to ED
and to its MSPs in the States through NSFs MSPnet and NSF project Web sites,
and in face-to-face meetings. Recent examples include:
At the October 2005 meeting of EDs State MSP Coordinators, NSF hosted EDs
MSP Coordinators from 46 States and shared with them the work, tools and instruments from 13 of NSFs MSP-funded Partnerships and RETA projects.
. NSF has provided the State MSP Coordinators access to and dedicated space
on NSFs MSPnet, the NSF-funded electronic community for sharing resources, research and events among MSPs.
At annual meetings of the NSF MSP Learning Network Conference [MSP Principal Investigators and project leaders], selected sessions are always jointly developed with and led by ED and/or their State MSPs.
NSFs MSP program staff and funded Partnerships/RETAs are participating in
and disseminating their work at each of EDs three regional MSP meetings in spring
2006 (in Orlando, Seattle and Boston).
MATH AND SCIENCE INSTRUCTION IN GRADES 58

Question 3. Both national and international tests continually show that U.S. students do well through the 4th grade and then a decline begins. The decline becomes
worse between grades 8th through 12th. What are your recommendations as to how
we can specifically improve grades 5 through 8 in regard to math and science instruction?
Answer 3. NSF recognizes that the middle grades are critical. In 2000, responding
to the insights from the Third International Mathematics and Science Study
(TIMSS, 1995) and contemporary research, NSF issued a special middle-school program solicitation (NSF 0080) that called for curriculum that embodied a strategic
vision of what students should know and be able to do; science instruction that expected students to study more demanding science content and increase the breadth
and scope of subsequent study; and a focus on instruction related to complex concepts delivered with emphasis on deeper understanding of fundamental ideas. The
4 multi-year, comprehensive curricula being supported will have major long-term
pay-off for the country. Examples:
Investigating and Questioning our World through Science and Technology
(IQWST) (ESI0439352). IQWST, a curriculum for grades 68, is currently being developed and field-tested. These materials are organized around driving questions
that provide a context to motivate students as they use their knowledge and skills
in scientific practices (e.g., modeling, designing investigations, explanation and argumentation, data gathering, analysis and interpretation), While the materials are
relatively new, preliminary results from their use in pilot classrooms have been very
promising with increases in both basic concept knowledge and increased ability for
students to construct scientific explanations.
A revised Connected Mathematics (CMP) curriculum released in 2005 (ESI
9986372) is helping students, grades 68, develop understanding of important concepts, skills, procedures, and ways of thinking and reasoning in number, geometry,
measurement, algebra, probability, and statistics. Early indications are that it has
a 25 percent market share. Evaluation results highlight two main points:
CMP students do as well as, or better than, non-CMP students on tests of basic
mathematics skills. And, CMP students outperform non-CMP students on tests of
problem solving ability, conceptual understanding, and proportional reasoning.
Examples of student work demonstrate that CMP students can use basic skills
to solve important mathematical problems and are able to communicate their reasoning and understanding.

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Another critical issue for the country is the preparation of teachers. Given that
many middle grades mathematics and science teachers tend not to have strong content preparation in their teaching area, it is important that preparation programs
in both disciplines be strengthened and that current teachers be assisted in gaining
new knowledge and skills. For the past 3 years, under the Teacher Professional
Continuum (TPC) program, NSF has funded several research studies that are increasing our understanding of issues related to the education, retention, and development of highly trained middle grades science teachers.
Out of school activities are also important for middle grades students. Information
Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST), grades 712, and the
soon-to-be-released NSF Academies for Young Scientists (NSFAYS), grades K8, will
develop demonstration models of how in-school and out-of-school science and mathematics experiences can work hand-in-hand to excite and prepare students, especially
those at the middle grades level. Opportunities provided by supported projects
should improve student performance in rigorous high school courses and potentially
lead to advanced study and potential careers in scientific disciplines.
U.S. STUDENT PERFORMANCE ON INTERNATIONAL TESTS

Question 4. The New England Association of Schools and Colleges has found that
one of the primary reasons this Nations students appear to do poorly after 4th
grade math and science on international tests is that the U.S. sets up math and
science curriculum completely different than most other Nations. For example, in
the U.S., calculus is usually taught in the 12th grade and in other countries, it is
taught in earlier grades. Thus, the international tests could be comparing apples to
oranges. What are your thoughts on this?
Answer 4. Comparing student achievement at the end of secondary school is more
complex than comparing elementary students because the mathematics content may
differ between countries and also because the percentage of students still in school
may differ by age 18. For that reason, only 2 international comparisons of mathematics have been attempted (in 1982 and 1995). The 1995 TIMSS 12th grade study
made an extensive effort to make the comparisons of populations as similar as possible. Yet, the achievement of U.S. students compared with the 16 countries that
agreed to participate in the study was very low.
The 12th grade study was intended to be a study of mathematics literacy at the
end of secondary school and thus all students were tested at a level of mathematics
that was appropriate for high school students. If the results are disaggregated and
the 14 percent of U.S. students who took advanced mathematics are compared to
similar students in other countries, the U.S. student ranking is as low as it is for
all students in the study (see Mathematics and Science Achievement in the Final
Year of Secondary School, Table 6.1 (attached) and available at http://isc.bc.edu/
timss1995/TIMSSPDF/C.admath.pdf (page 146 (20 of 57)). However, for the U.S.
students who took AP calculus, the performance rating was 513 or just above the
international average of 500. This finding calls into question the argument that the
comparisons are not fair.
The TIMSS study group published A Study of U.S. 12th Grade Mathematics and
Science Achievement in an International Context in 1998. The authors noted that the
average age of students in many high performing countries (Denmark, New Zealand, Norway and Sweden) was higher than in the United States and that it might
account for some of the achievement differences.

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RESPONSE

TO

QUESTION

OF

SENATOR ENZI

BY

ASSISTANT SECRETARY JOHNSON

Question 1. The Presidents American Competitiveness Initiative proposes new

Federal support to improve the quality of math, science, and technology education
in our K12 schools. The initiative includes a number of new and expanded programs including Math Now for elementary and middle school students. What spe-

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cific plans are being made to address improving science education at the elementary
and middle school levels?
Answer 1. Math skills are the foundation for learning science, so strengthening
math instruction is fundamental to improving science education. After we lay the
foundation with math, we hope to build on that success with a science panel.
Also, the Academic Competitiveness Council, established by the Deficit Reduction
Act of 2005, will improve the quality of evaluations of all Federal Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) programs, with a focus on examining
whether they are consistent with the principles of No Child Left Behind.
And the Adjunct Teacher Corps will create opportunities for qualified professionals from outside the K12 educational system to teach secondary-school courses
in the core academic subjects, with an emphasis on mathematics and the sciences.
RESPONSE

TO

QUESTIONS

OF

SENATORS ENZI

AND

JEFFORDS

BY

TOM RUDIN

Question 1. What role does philanthropy play in strengthening math and science
education throughout the K12 system? How can States and districts take advantage of the resources available to them through philanthropic organizations?
Answer 1. Philanthropy can and does play an important role in the process of
strengthening math and science education, and some States and districts are taking
advantage of these private funding opportunities. Much more can be done, however,
to attract philanthropic dollars to mathematics and science education reform.
The College Board, for example, has secured grants to support the development
and implementation of SpringBoard, its Pre-AP program in mathematics, from the
following foundations: GE Foundation, Toyota Motor Company Foundation, National
Science Foundation, and Ford Motor Company. Indeed, at this moment, the GE
Foundation and Ford Motor Company are supporting Pre-AP and AP expansion initiatives in Erie, Pennsylvania, and Lansing, Michigan, respectively.
The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has also funded a major College Board
Initiative called College Board Schools. We are pursuing the development of schools
comprising grades 612 that have as their goal every students successful completion
of two or more AP courses. Five College Board Schools are operating now in New
York City, and at least 12 more will open in the New York area within the next
2 years. At least 10, and possibly more than 100, additional Gates-sponsored schools
could open in States and districts across the Nation over the next 5 years. These
schools can be a model for other public schools across the country.
The Dell Foundation has recently funded an initiative of the National Governors
Association in which the NGA has awarded grants of $500,000 to six States for AP
expansion, with States required to provide a match of equal dollars. These six
StatesWisconsin, Nevada, Alabama, Kentucky, Georgia, and Maineare all pursuing major AP initiatives that focus on reaching traditionally underrepresented
student populations. Actually, the approach NGA has takenrequiring a $1 match
from the State for each $1 dollar awarded through the grant, and requiring States
to submit a comprehensive plan for statewide AP expansionmaybe a model that
you could consider for the structure and operation of the AP math and science provisions of PACE. We would be happy to talk further with you about how NGA developed the model, and the College Board is an integral partner in the operation of
that program.
Other foundation and corporate entities, including Intel and other high-tech firms,
have recognized that the future workforce needs better training and education, especially in the STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) fields. Those
foundations typically invest in programs at the school or district level, but could possibly be encouraged to make investments in States or across consortia of States.
States and districts can take advantage of these philanthropic opportunities in
several ways:
Pursue State funding directly with foundations and corporate entities, with the
aim of securing matching funds (to State and Federal investments) that are directed
toward improving mathematics and science teacher qualityand that can be used
to support incentive payments to teachers and schools that are committed to expanding student participation and performance in AP courses.
Establish partnerships with national organizations (such as the NGA, the College Board, and others) and jointly pursue foundation funding to support a specific
STEM initiativesuch as the NGA-Dell model cited above.
Develop State collaboratives in which States and philanthropic organizations
(both foundations and corporations) establish a pool or bank of resources from
which to draw to create national math-science initiatives such as AP and Pre-AP
professional development programs, teacher internships, and so forth.

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Use non-traditional corporate supportfor example, current and retired scientists and engineers who become scholars in residence in high schools with few
or no advanced teachers of science and mathematics, and who teach two or three
advanced-level courses.
Question 2. How does increasing the number of Advanced Placement courses in
a school impact the achievement of all students within that school?
Answer 2. School superintendents and principals increasingly recognize the value
of AP as leverage to increase achievement for all studentsto serve as the tide that
lifts all boats. They have discovered that the more AP teachers there are in a school,
the more rigorous and challenging the curriculum becomes in AP and non-AP classes alike. Further, because most AP teachers only teach one or two AP classes, and
three or four non-AP classes, many non-AP students benefit from the enhanced
training that AP teachers receive.
The influence of AP courses throughout a school, and the growing recognition of
the power of vertical teaming, was illustrated in a recent survey of AP Biology
teachers. More than half the teachers (59 percent) surveyed said that they are encouraged to coordinate the content of their courses with other teachers in their department.1
A new study from the National Center for Educational Accountability suggests
that one of the important values of AP can be the drive to improve the academic
preparation of all students prior to their enrollment in AP courses:
To improve their college readiness outcomes for [low-income] students, school districts need to approach Advanced Placement not as a special set of courses for
their already well-prepared students, but as a comprehensive program to prepare
large numbers of students, starting in the early grades and including disadvantaged
students, to be able to do college-level work before they leave high school.2
Evidence from the State of Florida and Charlotte-Mecklenburg (North Carolina)
Public Schools illustrates the connection between an expanded AP Program and enhanced student achievement throughout a State and school district. Through a partnership with the College Board, Florida has undertaken a number of initiatives
aimed at increasing the college readiness of its student populationincluding a
major AP expansion drive. The results of Floridas efforts since the inception of this
initiative in 2000 include the following:
AP participation increased by 125 percent from 2000 to 2005.
Minority AP participation increased by 128 percent from 2000 to 2005.
Minority SAT participation increased by 65 percent from 2000 to 2005.
Minority SAT verbal scores rose by 1 percent, even as 65 percent more students
were taking the test.
SAT participation by African-American students increased by 47 percent from
2000 to 2005.
The average SAT math score for African-American students increased by 2 percent.
SAT participation by Hispanic students increased by 84 percent from 2000 to
2005.
Approximately 7 years ago, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS) launched a
major commitment to increasing academic rigor and improving the rate of collegegoing among its students, and AP expansion was a major part of that effort. Among
the program components implemented by the district were the following:
AP Potential (testing students with the PSAT/NMSQT to identify strong candidates for AP success).
Pre-AP teacher professional development program implemented and required.
Strong teacher AP professional development program implemented.
The results of the CMS initiative include the following:
Minority participation in AP has risen by 56 percent since 2000.
The percentage of minority students scoring 3 or higher on AP exams has increased by 5 percent.
The number of African-American students receiving a score of at or above expectations (3 or 4) on the State algebra end-of-course assessment has risen by 6.4
percent. For the first time, over half of African-American students (55.4 percent)
passed the exam.
1 Pamela Paek, Eva Ponte, Irv Sigel, Henry Braun, and Donald E. Powers (2005), A Portrait
of Advanced Placement Teachers Practices. New York: The College Board.
2 Chrys Dougherty, Lynn Mellor, and Shuling Jian (2006), The Relationship Between Advanced
Placement and College Graduation, p. 14. Austin, TX: National Center for Educational Accountability.

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The number of African-American students receiving a passing score (3 or 4) on
the State English I end-of-course assessment has risen by 7 percent.
Average SAT scores have increased by 1.5 percent over the past 10 years, even
as the number of students taking the SAT increased by 42 percent and the number
of minority students taking the SAT increased by 88 percent.
In both the State of Florida and the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Public Schools, the
data support the notion that a major commitment to AP expansion, especially when
supported with other reform initiatives, raises overall student achievement, not just
that of students who take AP courses.
Question 3. Finding highly qualified science and math teachers is often a problem
for urban and rural schools. What can be done to retain teachers trained in Advanced Placement programs in difficult-to-staff schools?
Answer 3. Retaining teachers trained in AP in difficult-to-staff schools ultimately
boils down to the issue of incentives. What incentives drive teacher decisions to remain at or to move from a school? What factors make a school a difficult-to-staff
school? When teachers at urban or rural schools achieve a high level of competency
in AP, they are noticed by other educators and are recruited with incentives such
as greater salary, better teaching schedule (fewer preps and/or fewer periods), more
stable class sizes in AP than would be the case in a rural setting, and a more stable
learning environment than would be the case in an urban setting.
We have learned anecdotally that many AP teachers are more likely to persist in
the profession because of the fact that they are AP teachers. That is, they find the
challenges and rewards of AP teaching appealing, and many who would have otherwise left the profession remain teachers because of the opportunity to teach AP.
To retain high-quality teachers, the issue of incentives must be addressed. Incentives include the following:
More competitive compensation, including salary and benefits;
More planning periods;
Fewer preparation periods;
Opportunities to have mentors early in their careersand to mentor other
teachers later in their careers;
Opportunities to collaborate with other teachers and with other faculty (e.g.,
college professors) on content-based projects, such as science labs and internships;
Increased professional development opportunitieswith compensation.
Question 4. Both national and international tests continually show that U.S. students do well through the 4th grade and then a decline begins. The decline becomes
worse between grades 8 through 12. What are your recommendations as to how we
can specifically improve grades 5 through 8 in regard to math and science instruction?
Answer 4. We agree that grades 58 are the critical grades most responsible for
this decline. The majority of mathematics teachers at these grades, for example,
hold an elementary (K8) certificate and, thus, have far less than even a minor in
undergraduate mathematics content. (The usual requirement for elementary majors
at most colleges and universities is one general education math course plus one or
two math methods courses related to teaching content exclusively focused on the
mathematics taught in grades K5 rather than grades 68.)
Our recommendation is that States explore some form of middle school certification in mathematics and science, with two possible requirements:
(1) Middle school teacher candidates have at least a minor in mathematics or
science, and preferably a major in mathematics or science if they intend to teach
in those fields.
(2) Middle school teacher candidates have methods coursework that is focused on
training them in the skill of applying formative assessment strategies to diagnose
what students know, and how they know it, and be able to apply this diagnosis to
increasing student understanding, that is, in directing their mathematics or science
content coursework to the task of teaching students.
We note that the College Board is conducting NSF-sponsored research on mathematics teacher professional development that is focused on three guiding principles
of effective teaching in mathematics: (1) contentconceptual understanding is the
key to deep and long-lasting content learning; (2) pedagogystudent thinking about
mathematics is the key to getting students to learn mathematics; and (3) assessmentformative assessment strategies that discover what students know and how
they know it are the keys to increasing student learning. We believe that these
three guiding principles should be the basis of educating future teachers of mathematics and science.

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AP can drive improved teaching and learning of science and mathematics in the
middle grades. AP sets a standard for all students and teachers with its capstone
learning standards. Through vertical teaming and other professional development
experiences that bring middle grade and high school teachers together, and through
district back-mapping of the curriculum that sets standards and required knowledge across grades 611 in a way that prepares students for AP success, AP can
raise the bar and raise standards and expectations at all grade levels.
Question 5. The New England Association of Schools and Colleges has found that
one of the primary reasons this Nations students appear to do poorly after 4th
grade in math and science on international tests is that the U.S. sets up math and
science curriculum completely different than most other Nations. For example, in
the U.S., calculus is usually taught in 12th grade and in other countries, it is taught
in earlier grades. Thus, the international tests could be comparing apples to oranges. What are your thoughts on this?
Answer 5. Our initial reaction to the New England Association of Schools and Colleges conclusion is that it is a red herring. If the problems on the international tests
were explicit problems from calculus, then we could agree with the New England
Association of Schools and Colleges conclusion. However, looking at the TIMSS
grade 8 items, we find these items to be seemingly consistent with the mathematics
content that U.S. grade 8 students are being taught. The fact that the results are
poor reflects that U.S. students are not learning this material very well. This relates
more to the lack of preparation of middle school teachers in math content knowledge
and their ability to help their students understand this content.
Is the implication here to move calculus down to earlier grades in the United
States? We believe not. We have acknowledged the inability of U.S. schools to teach
students middle school math and science content to a satisfactory degree. Moving
calculus down would only make this problem worse, and it would raise new issues
of what, then, should be taught in the higher grades to students who have taken
calculus earlier, and whether teachers will be prepared to teach this new content
well.

[Whereupon, at 12:15 p.m, the subcommittee was adjourned.]

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